Kerala govt decides to form 9 more RRTs to curb human-wildlife conflicts

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala government on Wednesday decided to constitute nine more Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) to mitigate human-wildlife conflicts in the state.

The decision was taken by a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, a statement issued by his office said.

As part of implementing the decision, the cabinet gave permission to create nine posts each of Section Forest Officer, Forest Driver and Part-Time Sweeper in the Forest and Wildlife Department, the statement said.

The new RRTs are being formed at Palode in Thiruvananthapuram division, Thenmala in Punalur division, Vandanpatal in Kottayam division, Kadalar in Mankulam division, Kothamangalam in Kothamangalam division, Palapilli in Chalakudy division, Kollengode in Nenmara division, Karuvarakundu in Nilambur South division and Mananthavady in North Wayanad division, it said.

The decision to set up additional RRTs comes in the wake of animal attacks in the state, especially in areas close to forests, by elephants and tigers that claimed a few lives earlier this year.

Besides this, the cabinet also decided to appoint Director General of Prosecutions T A Shaji as the State Public Prosecutor in the Kerala High Court for a period of three years from June 2, the statement said.