* Elephant corridors have no legal protection under Wildlife (Protection) Act or the Environment (Protection) Act
* Many corridors have now become private land and areas under human use (road/rail)
* There is no dedicated money for corridor protection, experts demand Rs 200 crore for this in the 12th five-year plan

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The first news despatches brought out all the brutal detail: a

Bankura by now has become synonymous with Basudeb Acharia. For the eight-time MP from this constituency in West
Bengal, increasing connectivity between his home turf and the rest of the country has been of foremost importance. He argues that better connectivity spurs development.

Mamata Banerjee is a cult figure." This is how a Iwl resident of her constituency describes her. "She is I sure to crush her opponent, who is no match for her," he adds. This comment comes from a member of the upper middle class, the self-same group that analysts predict is least likely to vote Trinamool Congress because of the Tata Nano issue.

The man-animal conflict in the Sunderbans has touched scores of women tragically, leaving Jelepara a village of 'tiger widows'

Trouble Prowling
Jelepara village, in the Sunderbans, is known as the Village of Widows, because of the large number of its inhabitants killed by man-eating tigers

"It feels like your father left your mother for another woman and then married her." That's how Bikash Pakira, a 31-year-old in Singur, describes his sense of betrayal at Tata Motors' decision to pull out of West Bengal last year, and roll out its small car Nano from somewhere miles away.

IT didn't take too long for the warm afterglow of the deal between Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee and the West Bengal government to dissipate into a debate over drafting. But then, such devil in the detail could stymie the settlement