Kerala man killed in wild elephant attack; Opposition alleges government inaction
Kerala man killed in wild elephant attack; Opposition alleges government
inaction
The New Indian Express
February 12, 2025
A 27-year-old man was killed in a wild elephant attack in this hill
district in the early hours of Wednesday, police said.
The incident was reported from a tea estate in Attamala near Chooralmala
where landslides claimed several lives in July last year.
The victim has been identified as Balakrishnan, a member of the tribal
community, police said. He is a resident of a paddy village, adjacent to
the tea estate.
The incident is believed to have occurred around 3 am on Wednesday, the
police added.
Meanwhile, residents protested against the alleged lack of initiatives from
the authorities to protect them from wild animal attacks.
They did not allow the body to be taken to the hospital until the
authorities assured them of adequate steps to prevent such attacks and
provide assistance to the deceased person's family.
They demanded Rs 10 lakh in compensation, a government job for a dependent,
and financial support for Balakrishnan's funeral.
As a first step, the forest department will hand over Rs 5 lakh to the
victim's kin on Wednesday itself, and the tribal department will provide
all necessary assistance for conducting the funeral, the Tehsildar of
Vythiri Taluk said.
The remaining Rs 5 lakh will soon be handed over to the kin, he told
reporters.
Following this assurance, the protesters allowed the body to be shifted to
a government hospital in Sultan Bathery for a post-mortem.
A forest officer said that people living in forest fringe areas should not
venture out of their homes at odd hours.
Locals complained that wild elephants regularly enter the residential areas
of Mundakkai and destroy crops.
They sought a permanent solution to the problem.
The incident was reported a day after a 45-year-old man was killed in a
wild elephant attack in a forest fringe area in Noolpuzha village on the
Kerala-Tamil Nadu border in this district.
Meanwhile, the local leadership of the Congress-led UDF has called for a
hartal in Wayanad district on Thursday, accusing the state government of
'failing' to take steps to protect people from wild animal attacks.
UDF District Chairman K K Ahmed Haji and Convener P T Gopala Kurup said in
a statement that the hartal is being organised in response to the
government's inaction despite the frequent loss of human lives due to these
attacks.
Essential services as well as travel for exams, weddings, and annual
religious festivals have been exempted from the hartal, the leaders said.
Speaking to reporters in Thiruvananthapuram, Leader of the Opposition in
the State Assembly V D Satheesan said that shocking news continues to
emerge from the high-range areas of the state.
"In the past three days alone, four people have been trampled to death by
elephants. In just one week, five people have lost their lives. Despite
repeated demands for urgent action, the government has done nothing. The
government's current approach amounts to abandoning the people living near
forest borders to their fate," he alleged.
He said that elephants are reportedly entering human settlements due to a
lack of water in the forest.
"If that is the case, arrangements should be made to provide water and food
within the forest itself. Other states have already implemented systems to
supply water and food in forest areas where elephants frequently wander,"
Satheesan said.
"Kerala too has taken similar measures in the past. The government must
take immediate steps to deploy special teams in areas where elephants are
commonly sighted to ensure people's safety," he added.
The Congress leader further stated that meetings alone are not solving the
issue.
"Shouldn't the government at least deploy the Rapid Action Force in
high-risk areas? Shouldn't food and water be provided for the animals?
Temperatures are set to rise further. Does this mean more elephants will
enter villages, leading to more human casualties? Is that what the minister
is suggesting?" Satheesan asked.