Pirate power supply for army kills elephant

[TamilNet, Sunday, 01 February 2004, 04:37 GMT]
A wild elephant was electrocuted by an illegal power supply line to the Kayankerni Sri Lanka army camp, 36 kilometres north of Batticaloa, residents told TamilNet Sunday. Three elephants in a herd were electrocuted by the Kayankerni SLA pirate power line last year, they said.

The elephant was killed on Thursday night when it got entangled in the power lines that pirate electricity to the SLA camp. Elephants from the Vakarai region’s forest hinterlands cross the Kayankerni road in search of fresh water in marshes close to the coast.

The Sri Lanka army pirates electricity for its camp in Kayankerni from the grid at Navalady Junction on the Batticaloa- Colombo road.

Residents say that the SLA makeshift power supply line poses a danger to pedestrians too because it is very low and is unprotected.

Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) sources in the eastern district say that the cost of power that is pirated by many SLA camps in the region are borne by local consumers.

CEB officials in Batticaloa town declined to comment.

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