The Tamil Nadu government plans to modernise the Theppakadu Elephant Camp in the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve and conduct studies on captive elephants, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin said on Saturday.
Speaking at an event here, he said Theppakadu is the oldest elephant camp in Asia, and there was scope to study captive elephants kept in the camp. The Chief Minister recalled that his father and former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi was instrumental in getting Mudumalai notified as a tiger reserve. “The government is taking steps to increase forest cover across the State from 20.21% to 33%,” he said.
He said ₹5 crore was earmarked for removal of invasive species in the Nilgiris and the government was formulating plans to protect the Nilgiris’ environment.