A rubber planter has moved the Kerala High Court seeking to issue instructions to the authorities to reduce the number of wild animals by allowing its culling.
T. V. George, the petitioner, has sought steps for restricting the movement of wild animals within the forest areas and to direct the authorities to shoot at sight the wild animals that are roaming in human habitats.
The petitioner contended that he was finding it difficult to get the tapping of rubber trees done as workers were scared of the potential threat of wild animal attacks.
He said he was suffering from “indiscriminate attacks and gross nuisance made by wild animals from the nearby forest.”
Human-wildlife conflicts have become rampant in Kerala. The growth of wild animals has not been controlled or curtailed in India since the promulgation of the Wildlife (Protection ) Act 1972. The Act was enacted at a time when the population of wild animals and birds had depleted drastically. However, the situation has changed drastically during the last 50 years, he argued.
The petitioner also wanted the power to issue permits for the killing of wild animals to be entrusted to the District Collectors and divisional forest officers.
