The foresters in Chittoor district were elated when the Asiatic elephants reappeared in the Kuppam region in the early 1980s, after a hiatus of a century. By 1990, the Koundinya wildlife sanctuary spreading over about 1 lakh acres of foersts in Palamaner, Kuppam and Chittoor west ranges, flanked by Tamil Nadu and Karnatakawas was ready for the pachyderms.
Man-animal conflict
The number of elephants which stood in single digit four decades ago has now increased to more than a hundred, including those in the Koundinya sanctuary. Now, the elephant menace has become a concern for the foresters and the farmers as the animals frequently venture into agriculture lands and damage crops, leading to man-animal conflict. Nine elephants died of electrocution in 2019-20 financial year and half a dozen of people died during the same period. Many villagers were injured in jumbo attacks.
Even as the forest officials have dug elephant-proof trenches, erected solar fencing and installed rock pillars to prevent elephants from straying into human habitations, none of these measures have proven to be adequate to contain the menace.
Radio-collar project
Between 2016 and 2018, around ₹40 crore was spent on trenches and erecting fences to cover the porous inter-State borders. The Forest Department also mooted a radio-collar project for stray elephants at a cost of ₹50 lakh, but it was shelved due to technical reasons.
What worries the forest officials in Chittoor district is that the forest ranges that have a sound elephant population are poorly staffed, while a big chunk of the available staff are on the verge of their retirement. The operations to drive away the stray elephants into the forests in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka need at least a dozen of elephant-trackers and watchers.
The officials say that the elephjants continue to outsmart them, adding that it is impossible to monitor the forest stretch over a hundred kilometers with the available staff strength.
Frequent crop raids
The tri-State junction has been witnessing frequent crop raids by elephants from Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, which have a pachyderm population of more than 7,000, the officials say.
Even as several plans made to hold meetings of the forest officials of the three States to tackle the inter-State problem, no tangible results could be seen as of now.
In January this year, three elephants from Tamil Nadu ventured into the plain areas of Nagari and Puttur after passing through several ranges covering over 170 km. Three months have passed, the officials are yet to draw an action plan to tackle the group and prevent the crop raids.
“One of the major reason for the elephant meance in Chittoor district is the rising the population of the animals in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. The herds continue to move from Mudumalai in Tamil Nadu into the the tri-State junction area in Chittoor in search of food, water and new territory. We are exploring all possibilities to tackle the inter-State problem,” Divisional Forest Officer (Chittoor West) S. Ravi Shankar told The Hindu.
