Leader of the opposition V.D. Satheesan has said that the government should give up its apathy in addressing recurring incidences of man-animal conflict in the State.
Speaking after visiting house of the deceased farmer Ajeesh at Chaligaddha in an elephant attack on Monday Mr. Satheesan said residents in hilly areas of the State were in panic after an increase in wildlife attacks. Hence, the government should leave its inactivity in addressing the issue.
The leader was here as part of the “Samaragni” march spearheaded by him and Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president K. Sudhakaran.
As many as 85 people were killed in wildlife attacks last year and most of the residents in the area were forced to keep their land fallow. Mr. Satheesan expressed concern about how local residents could survive and ensure their childrens’ education amidst the challenges faced.
The government owed to pay compensation to as many as seven thousand victims, including the people who lost their lives, sustained injuries and faced huge losses in wildlife crop raids, he said. But the Budget allocation for addressing the issue was a meagre amount of ₹48 crore, adding that the amount was insufficient for even constructing the proposed stone wall on Aralam farm in Kannur.
The government failed to draft or execute any project to mitigate man-animal conflict, Mr. Satheesan said.
The Belur Makhana was first sighted in the district on January 5 and the Karnataka forest department had provided the user ID and password to track the animal to the Kerala forest department, he said. It would take nearly three hours to decode signal received for the radio collar attached to an elephant. But the department lacked efficient system to locate the animal, he added.
As the issue was Inter-State-related, the Chief Minister and Forest Minister should contact their counterparts in Karnataka to address it. The opposition would give its full support for the purpose, he said.
