Chennai, Feb 3 (BPNS)
The forest department of Krishnagiri area in Tamil Nadu bordering Karnataka is on a high alert after wild elephants trampled a man to death on Wednesday early morning. The deceased Chinappa (67) is the fifth man to be killed by a wild elephant since January 2022.
Forest officials said that ten elephants are roaming around the area and have given a red alert to villagers of Lakshmipuram, Narapannati, Ratnagiri, and Satnakkal. The villagers are alerted not to go out at night on the roads also as the elephants are roaming in roads also during night hours from the adjoining forest areas.
Denkanaikottai forest range officials said that the elephants are also damaging the crops and villagers have complained of 100 kg of Ragi crops destroyed by wild elephants.
Krishnagiri district collector has already conducted a meeting with forest, revenue, and police officials to bring out a solution to the vexing problem as the villagers who are mainly into cattle rearing will have to go to the forest areas with the cattle.
Chinappa who was killed by a wild elephant was a shepherd and he had gone into the forest area with his cattle on Tuesday morning when he did not return home till late evening on Tuesday, the family alerted the police who in turn sent messages to the forest department. Forest department on a search inside the Denkanaikottai forest found the body of Chinnappa trampled by the elephant on early Wednesday morning.
Krishnagiri-based cattle farmer and social activist, M. Mukundaraj while speaking to BPNS said, “ Elephants are creating menace in the area and five people have already lost their lives since the beginning of the new year. This has to be curtailed and people have to be properly given awareness on not to venture into forest areas even for grazing the cattle. Secondly, the forest department must ensure that the elephants are driven away deep into the forest and must prevent them from venturing into the human settlements. The forest department has all the facilities and they have to manage this properly.”
