Kovai institute to aid MoEF to mitigate man-animal conflict
The Union Minister also emphasized that the Chief Wildlife Wardens (CWW) can declare wild boars as vermin and there is no need to amend the law.
CHENNAI: Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav on Thursday said his ministry will rope in the Coimbatore-based Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History for mitigation of man-animal conflicts in the Nilgiri biosphere covering southern states of Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
“We feel that all southern states need better cooperation, coordination and collaboration on wildlife issues,” Yadav said after a meeting with local administration and forest officials. He also emphasized protecting both wildlife as well as human lives.
Regarding alerting residents about wild animal incursions into inhabited areas, Yadav said he has suggested to the district collector to create a small WhatsApp group of the forest officers and the district administration. The Union Minister also emphasized that the Chief Wildlife Wardens (CWW) can declare wild boars as vermin and there is no need to amend the law. “CWWs have the power under the Act to permit trapping, capture and killing of problematic animals,” he said but urged the State to use this power “diligently and cautiously”.
The central minister’s statement assumes significance as the Tamil Nadu and Kerala legislative assemblies have moved call attention motions and passed resolutions seeking solutions to human-animal conflicts in the southern states over the past few days.
The Union Minister also said that the Centre, through the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), will assist in preparing corridor management plans in Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, for the smooth movement of elephant herds in the region.
Pointing to the killing of five persons by wild elephants in Krishnagiri in the past month alone, PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss on Thursday said 152 persons have lost lives in similar cases in three years across the State. “It is said the conflicts are due to lack of water, farming in forest areas, encroachment of elephant corridors and others. Efforts to rectify the mistakes have not yielded results,” he said.
State Forest Minister Mathiventhan on Wednesday informed the Assembly that a three-member team has been constituted to tranquilise the stray elephant that killed four persons in Krishnagiri.
According to sources with the TN forest department and Central Academy for State Forest Service, the human-wildlife conflict is higher in critical corridors spread over TN, Kerala and Karnataka.
“Gudalur, Wayanad, Valparai, Masinakudi, Krishnagiri ghats, Mysuru and Chamrajnagar have recorded an increase in wildlife conflicts and there is a need for immediate integrated baseline surveys and field operations to handle wildlife conflicts,” explained conservation scientist A Kumaraguru of Biodiversity Conservation Foundation, Tiruchy. Besides these corridors, the farmers in Dindigul, Tiruchy, Madurai, Coimbatore and Virudhunagar complain about boar and peacock destroying farmlands.
