Elephants then, wild buffaloes now scare Chengam villagers

AMBUR: Farmland owners at the foot of the Jawadhu Hills on the outskirts of Chengam were taken aback when a herd of seven wild buffaloes descended the hill and entered their land in search of foliage, sources said.

“This is the first time that the herd has descended the hill. Earlier, we would find one or two animals who would just graze for some time and slowly meander back into the hills,” an affected farmer seeking anonymity said.

Elaborating, he said, “They refuse to budge when we try to chase them and in turn chase us which has frightened local people.” Asked if he had informed Forest officials, he replied in the affirmative and added that forest staff were trying to chase them back up the hills “which is not an easy task.”

Jumbo herd destroys farm

Meanwhile, in Tirupattur district, forests officials were monitoring a herd of five elephants and two calves, which entered and destroyed standing banana and mango crops leading to loss for farmers in Ponnapalli hamlet of Arungaldurgam village panchayat near Ambur, sources said.

Tirupattur DFO Nag Satish Gidijala said, “The animals have strayed from Kaundanya reserve in AP and are being monitored to ensure that they are slowly driven back into the reserve.”