Trial run conducted on new Bidar-Gulbarga railway line

Source: The Hindu

Get set, go: An engine leaves Khanapur junction near Bidar for the trial run on the new Khanapur-Humnabad line.

South Central Railway officials conducted a trial run on the newly-constructed Khanapur-Humnabad line on Monday.

This 38-km stretch has been completed in the first phase of the 108-km Bidar-Gulbarga railway line. “The work on the line is complete and it is ready for inspection by the Commissioner of Railway Safety,” S. Subramanya, Deputy Chief Engineer (Construction), South Central Railway, told presspersons at the Khanapur junction on Monday.

The Khanapur junction was being used for operations and track-changing. But it was not yet being used for passenger services. Mr. Subramanya said work on the Bidar-Gulbarga line had been divided into three parts. “The first phase of 38 km is complete. Earth work is complete in the second phase of 17 km and railway tracks are being laid. Of the 43 km in the third phase, earth work is under progress in the 10-km stretch between Gulbarga and Tajsultanpur,” he said.

Officials estimate the total line between Khanapur and Gulbarga will be completed by 2014. The total cost of the project is around Rs. 400 crore. Of this, Rs. 150 crore has been spent on the first phase.

JLR to launch blackbuck resort in Bidar on March 1

Source: The Hindu

A cottage on offer at the blackbuck resort of Jungle Lodges and Resorts near Vilaspur lake in Khanapur forest range in Bidar.

Jungle Lodges and Resorts (JLR) will inaugurate a property in the Khanapur forest range in Bidar on March 1.

“Online bookings for the blackbuck resort will start from Wednesday,” Deputy Commissioner Sameer Shukla said here on Tuesday. It will be formally inaugurated later. JLR officials will take a decision on who will inaugurate the resort and when, Mr. Shukla said.

He was speaking to journalists after inspecting work on the lakeside property.

According to him, the property on the banks of the Vilaspur lake will have 18 cottages of three categories and one royal suite. The blackbuck resort is the first JLR property to have a royal suite. The resort is situated on seven acres of revenue land gifted to JLR by the district administration. The tariff ranges from Rs. 2,750 to Rs. 3,250 per person per day for the cottages. Tariff for the suite is yet to be decided.

Each cottage has a waiting room, double bed, wash room, and a balcony that opens to the water front. “The specialty of this resort is that each cottage is on the water front. Cottages are designed in such a way that privacy is ensured for each cottage. One balcony is not visible from the other,” he said.

JLR is offering joy fishing, coracle rides, nature treks and star gazing in the Khanapur forest. Wildlife tour guides will accompany campers to blackbuck spotting and bird watching in the woods around the resort.

Water sports will be organised in the Karanja dam. JLR will take campers to guided tours around national monuments in Bidar, including the Bidar Fort, Mahamud Gawan Madrassa and the Ashtur tombs.

The cost of the project is around Rs. 3.5 crore. Of this, Rs. 2.75 crore has been spent. “We have sought assistance from the Union Government and are hopeful of getting around Rs. 1.2 crore,” Mr. Shukla said. As many as 10 youth from surrounding villages are employed here, he said.

Bookings can be done from Wednesday on www.junglelodges.com. Details can be had on Ph: 080 40554055, 9449599774.

Khanapur forest area to be declared elephant reserve

Source: Times of India

 

BELGAUM: As many as 64,643 hectares of forest area, covering 161 villages in Khanapur taluk in the district, will be declared as an elephant corridor and notified as Elephant Reserve, where there is a regular movements of elephants. This corridor will come under Dandeli Elephant Reserve, which covers Belgaum, Karwar, Dharwad and Haveri districts.

The move has come up to conserve elephants and avert human-elephant conflicts in these districts. Once the corridor area is notified, all forest area covering the corridor will be upgraded to reserve forest from the present protected forest. Besides this, the forest area will get additional importance on the forests map. Elephants will get maximum protection from the department and farmers will be compensated for damage of their crops.

Recently, the principle chief conservator of forest wildlife, B K Singh visited Khanapur and inspected the elephants' route. He instructed the conservators of forests of Belgaum, Dharwad and Canara circles to send a comprehensive proposal to the Union ministry of environment and forests regarding the matter.

Following his instructions, the forest department has identified an elephant corridor, based on studies done during the last 10 years. They took into account the number of crop damage incidents and elephant attacks on humans, while identifying the corridor.

Speaking to `The Times of India' deputy conservator of forests of Belgaum division, Girish Hosur said: "Generally, elephants appear in the Belgaum forest division during October and November, as they have plenty of paddy and sugarcane crops, during these harvesting months."

Hosur said elephants have a good memory and never forget their routes for at least 12 years after passing thorough a place with good amount of food. He said the Belgaum division has the fixed a migratory path for the elephants. The herd of elephants, which arrive from Dandeli Wildlife Sanctuary and Haliyal forest divisions will enter into the Chandagad forests of Maharashtra via Khanapur forests.