Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on February 17 (Saturday) ordered a high-level ministerial meeting in Wayanad on February 20 to finalise real-time and proactive measures to mitigate human-wildlife conflict in the hilly district in Kerala with an estimated 36.5% forest cover.
Back-to-back deaths in wild elephant attacks, including that of an eco-tourism guide, Paul, 52, on February 16, had forced beleaguered residents, a majority of them from settler farmer families, to observe a hartal in Wayanad on Saturday.
The Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) issued the communique against the backdrop of largely politically bipartisan protests against the Forest department for allegedly not doing enough to protect the lives and property of citizens from increasing wildlife incursions into human habitations.
The CMO said Revenue, Forest, and Local Self-Governments Ministers would chair the meeting. Elected representatives in Wayanad district would participate in the conference.
Earlier, the Kerala government had announced the use of aerial drones, electronic sensors, radio collaring, public announcements and WhatsApp groups to notify residents in advance about wildlife intrusions. It also suggested digging moats and setting up electric and bio-fences to impede wildlife. The government had also warned forest resort owners against strewing food to attract wildlife for the benefit of guests.
The administration also announced the creation of a round-the-clock control room backed by rapid response teams involving police and forest officials to insulate residential areas from wildlife forays. Kerala was in close coordination with neighbouring Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, with which the State shares contiguous forests.
Last week, a wild elephant had chased a passerby, Ajeesh, 48, into a house in Wayanad in and trampled him to death, stoking public outrage that spilt onto the streets and choked interstate traffic for the better part of a day.
The Forest department’s effort to tranquillise, capture and release the radio-collared wild elephant has yet to yield any result.
Early this week, the Kerala Legislative Assembly adopted a unanimous resolution urging the Central government to amend the Wild Life Protection Act suitably to mitigate human-wildlife conflicts.
Members across the aisle supported the resolution aimed at eliminating wildlife that trespass on human habitations, imperilling the life and property of citizens, destroying crops and preying on livestock. Kerala also requested the Centre to declare marauding wild boars as vermin.
The resolution demanded that the Central law empower Chief Forest Conservators to use lethal force to liquidate wild animals that trespass on residential localities and pose an imminent threat to human life. It also requested the Centre to initiate scientific and humane measures to control the wildlife population.
An estimated 50 lakh families, mostly settler farmers, live near forests in Kerala. In most places, the buffer zone between forests and human habitation was non-existent or, at best, blurred.
The Forest department has reported an uptick in wildlife intrusions into human habitations with the summer peaking. At least a few intrusions have turned lethal for humans and livestock.
According to figures tabled in the Kerala Assembly, marauding wild elephants, foraging feral pigs, and monkeys ferreting about for easy pickings have caused crop losses estimated at ₹68 crore since 2019.
Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan had told the Assembly that wildlife incursions posed an almost existential threat to the State’s rural economy.
During the debate on an adjournment notice, he said that children go to school in forested districts in fear. Farmers risked their lives to collect fodder for livestock. Rubber tappers were reluctant to set out early to plantations.
Mr. Satheesan said tuber crop cultivation has reached a standstill in Kerala due to the menace of wild pigs.
He urged the government to clear life and crop loss compensations expeditiously and demanded State employment for the next of kin of victims of wildlife attacks.
