Khandre: Human-wildlife conflict management task force will be constituted

Eshwar B. Khandre iMinister for Forests, Ecology and Environment, stated on Monday that a conflict management task force to address human-wildlife conflict will be constituted in the State.

While chairing a meeting of the officials in Bandipur, following a tiger attack in which a farmer was killed in Saragur, the Minister said that the task force will be a State-level entity and will comprise local representatives, NGOs and environmental experts.

The meeting was a fallout of back-to-back tiger attacks in a span of 10 days in Saragur in which one farmer died while the other victim is under treatment but battling for life in a private hospital in Mysuru.

Mr. Khandre said that the task force will take up educational awareness activities and sensitise people living in villages along the forest periphery on preventive measures to be taken to avoid conflict. The task force will visit schools in the forest periphery and sensitise students about wildlife and function as a bridge to promote amity between the forest department and the villagers, he said.

The Minister directed the officials and the local administration to clamp down with prohibitory orders to prevent people from crowding during combing operations. The urgency for such a measure stems from the fact that the operations are hindered by the crowd which congregates to watch the exercise and courts a danger.

On the imperatives of timely communication to the villagers of the presence of wild animals, the Minister said the public should be informed through loudspeakers if elephants or tigers enter residential areas, and information must also be disseminated through social media for greater reach.

A command centre will be established for continuous monitoring of the presence of wild animals, and it will be equipped with thermal cameras, drones, and state-of-the-art technology. WhatsApp messages will be forwarded on sighting wild animals close to the villages, the Minister said, calling for its urgent implementation.

Mr. Khandre emphasised the need to increase foot patrolling in conflict zones so that precautions could be taken to avoid injury or crop loss. To redress staff shortage and fill vacant posts, the officials were directed to initiate the recruitment process. In addition to it, frontline staff could be outsourced, Mr. Khandre said.

The Minister instructed Chief Wildlife Warden P.C. Rai to submit a report within five days on possible measures that could be taken to prevent elephants and tigers from straying out of the forests. The officials were instructed to take up tentacle fencing, solar fencing, and dig elephant-proof trenches where necessary to supplement the rail barricades being installed in areas that are hotspots for human-elephant conflicts.

Mr. Khandre said that farmers have attributed the rise in conflict situations to an increase in wildlife safaris and the disturbances being caused in forests and hence he would discuss the issue with officials.

MLAs Anil Chikkamadu and Ganesh Prasad, Principal Secretary Manoj Kumar, APCCF, Manor Rajan, Deputy Commissioner of Chamarajanagar Shilpa Nag, SP Kavitha were among those present.