Amaravati/Bengaluru, Aug 9 (IANS): The Karnataka government has agreed to send eight Kumki elephants to Andhra Pradesh to mitigate man-elephant conflict in parts of the state.

The Karnataka Forest Department will send the trained Kumki elephants, as requested by Andhra Pradesh to overcome the havoc caused by wild elephants by damaging crops and attacking humans.

The decision was taken during the meeting between Andhra Pradesh’s Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan and Karnataka Forest Minister Eshwar B. Khandre in Bengaluru on Thursday.

Khandre said that Karnataka has already sent Kumki elephants to states like Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh.

Pawan Kalyan, who holds the portfolio of Environment and Forest, told media persons after the meeting that the two states agreed to work together for the protection of forests, wildlife and red sander. He said the two sides discussed seven points and reached a memorandum of understanding.

He said they discussed the handing over of red sander worth Rs 140 crore belonging to Andhra Pradesh and seized in Karnataka. He was all praise for Karnataka forest officials for their honesty in declaring that the red sander seized by them belonged to Andhra Pradesh. While red sander worth Rs 100 crore was seized in 2017, another Rs 40 crore worth of red sander was seized this year.

Both states discussed the problem of red sander cutting in the Sheshachalam forests of Andhra Pradesh.

Pawan Kalyan said he requested Karnataka forest officials to focus on efforts to check smuggling of red sanders to other countries. He said that the red sander from Andhra Pradesh is being smuggled to Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and other regions.

The officials of both states decided to prepare an action plan to use technology for the protection of forest produce. They agreed to maintain strict vigil using satellite technology.

Both the states also agreed to tackle poaching with an iron hand. Forest officials of both Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh will work together to prepare an action plan to strictly enforce the ban. They vowed to protect the wildlife in the forests in border areas between the two states.

Pawan Kalyan said they also discussed the opportunities in eco-tourism. They shared views on promoting safari and jungle tours.

The Deputy Chief Minister said both states will have mutual cooperation for the protection of forests and their Forest Departments will move forward in this direction with workshops and conferences. He observed that there is also a need to create social awareness for the conservation of forests.

On the request of the Karnataka government to provide lands in Srisailam and Tirumala for building accommodation for pilgrims from Karnataka, Pawan Kalyan said he would bring the issue to the notice of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu. He said the state Cabinet would take an appropriate decision in this regard.