As a columnist I have been repeatedly writing about Man – Animal conflict which has become very serious in Kodagu. Several lives have been lost and there has been huge damage to private property. People fear to come out of their houses even during daytime. Everyone is talking, the regular reports are done by the media, it is as if something is happening in a movie, that I think is what watching real life horror on television, day after day does to us which makes us insensitive. We have been reading and often watching the news of wild elephants trampling the workers in the estates thereby destroying the agricultural crops of farmers.
Why is the menace neglected over the years? Why has the Government and the Forest department failed to foresee proper solutions to the problem? It has become their regular activity to rush to various locations with the domesticated elephants to drive away the wild elephants back to forests only to momentarily satisfy the complaining people. Their only answer is shortage of food and fodder in the forest. Who is responsible? Who has to provide fodder? Our government seems to think that by giving some compensation the problem of Man – Animal conflict could be washed away. Human lives lost can in no way be compensated, although monetary relief may help families during their time of need. The last elephant census in Coorg showed there were more wild elephants in coffee plantations than in forest. Besides the deaths caused due to attack on people by elephants, there is considerable loss to the crops. The menace has become a real and present danger for people in Kodagu.
The cavalier attitude of the government in general and the forest department in particular, in addressing this problem is most distressing and appalling. Capturing and relocation elephants is certainly not an easy task, and it is indeed traumatic. But delaying a solution and inaction is not going to make the problem go away. It is the duty of the government and particularly the forest department to ensure elephants do not come into human habitation. Unless there is a stringent law this problem will not be solved and will only get worse. Protest and bundh continuing in Kodagu the conflict is stills elusive. We need a long- term permanent solution to tackle the human- wildlife conflict before people take law into their own hands and kill wildlife. Over the years, Kodagu has documented the highest number of fatalities resulting from wild animal attacks, be it elephants, tigers or leopards. Apart from damage to crops, there is a constant fear of elephant attacks that the planters and workers live with.
Cases of labourers getting trampled on by enraged elephants have become common too. The answer by the government is to increase the budget allocation for resolving Man – Animal conflicts and compensation to the affected. But does it work? No. This might even lead to more suffering for wildlife and people. The government have to stop the release of forest lands for developmental projects. Highways, railways, and waterways through the protected areas should be strictly avoided. The wildlife habitats must be free from summer fires. Kodagu has become a hub for wildlife conflict and Many lives of both humans and wild animals are being lost. While the footfalls of tigers across the estates of Kodagu are quite recent, the conflict with wild elephants has become a decade – old story. Radio collaring of the elephants has earlier proven efficient in curbing the conflict by nearly 50 percent.Nevertheless, no steps are being taken by the officials to enable this. In this tussle for space, elephants stand to lose as much. Elephants lose their numbers or are severely injured from proofing used to keep them in the forest like EPT (Elephant proof trenches)and solar fences. So many precious lives are lost. We mourn the loss and hold the silence. Are there any solutions found? How long the public will tolerate and keep quiet? Do we really believe that nothing can be done? Not only elephants in south Kodagu,tigers maul cattle heads, Bisons raid coffee estates and this has made our life insecure. The Karnataka Forest department has definitely failed to solve the problem.
