Wildlife Dept expedites payments to victims of elephant attacks

S.M. Wijayaratne Kurunegala correspondent

The Department of Wildlife has now decided to pay compensation to all people who are victims of wild elephant attacks.

Earlier, victims of wild elephant attacks had to wait for years to get compensation, but now the department has planned to pay compensation within two or three months.

The Director of North Western Wildlife Zone Manjula Amararatne told the Daily News that if a householder faces death due to a wild elephant attack the dependants of that family will be entitled to Rs. 100,000 as compensation. A member of any family who faces death due to a wild elephant attack will get Rs. 75,000.

If a householder becomes totally in capacitated for life due to an attack of elephants he will get Rs. 100,000 as compensation.

Amararatne added that the Government has already drafted a policy to save elephants and to minimise elephant human conflict in the future.