Chennai: The authorities have informed the Madras high court that they have submitted a report with a request to government to delegate powers vested with Chief Wildlife Warden to Range Officers/Foresters to shoot wild pigs that damage agriculture crops in forest areas for a prescribed period.
The authorities stated this in their counter affidavit filed in response to a PIL by A. R. Gokulakrishnan, a social activist, which sought a direction to the authorities to take all remedial measures to prevent the menace of wild boars, which were destroying crops.
Taking this on record and closing the PIL, a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice M.M. Sundresh said, “If we may say so, this is a man-animal conflict arising from man spreading into areas which are the habitats of animals. This increase is also a result of predators of boar being destroyed in man-animal conflict affecting the very cycle of the ratios of the population of different kinds of animals”.
The bench said that in the counter filed by authorities, it was accepted that there was considerable damage to crops in the fringe areas of forest varying from two per cent to as high as more than 21 per cent.
The authorities also submitted that human-wild pig conflict was a serious concern for wildlife managers and conservationists. Over abundance of wild pig population, scarcity of food and shrinking natural habitats many a time compelled wild pigs to intrude forest fringe villages, in search of food that may cause huge damage to crops.
The farmers living adjacent to forested areas face considerable economic losses and expect huge compensation from government. In order to reduce human-wild pig conflicts, population management or population control was necessary. During the last five years, Rs 1.88 crore had been paid to affected farmers in Tamil Nadu as compensation.
The authorities submitted that taking into consideration scientific management of wild pigs, especially in high abundance areas, the report with request to government to delegate powers for a prescribed period had been submitted.
