Idukki’s man-animal conflict: The elephant in the room Viju B, Times of India April 24, 2024 Manoharan felt a moist sniff behind his shoulders, as he bent down to pluck green cardamom. When he turned back, he found the trunk of a wild tusker trying to wrap his neck. He ran for his life, but his wife was not that lucky. The tusker pulled her hair and tore her raincoat into many pieces. Since this nightmarish encounter with the elephant that occurred a few months ago, the couple has lost all confidence to work in their modest one-acre farm at Chinnakanal, and even walk alone in this tribal colony at Idukki. The increasing number of man-animal conflict that is occurring almost daily at Chinnakanal is an apt symbol of what has gone wrong in this hill range constituency, which incidentally boasts some of the most scenic tourist spots in the country, with a Unesco heritage tag to boot. Chinnakanal is a green valley surrounded by three hills —Kolukkumalai, Pappathichola and Mathikettan —bordering Anayirangal reservoir and has been an integral elephant habitat. The A K Antony govt in 2002 decided to allot 301 landless tribal families from different parts of the state over 300 acres for farming and housing in this region. This historical ecological blunder, without making a proper assessment of the buffer zones of the forest region and neglecting the elephant corridors, has impacted the lives of the tribal settle ment here. Over the years, tribal families were forced to leave this settlement, as elephants crushed their houses, and today only 43 families stay here braving the attacks. “Twenty-one elephants come here almost every day in search of fodder and water. We have no option but to run on seeing them,” says Manoharan, the Oorumoopan. Interestingly, the manifestos of both LDF and UDF do not provide a comprehensive solution to this issue, but instead want to amend wildlife act and dilute the buffer zone rules. Among the seven assembly segments — Udumbanchola, Kothamangalam, Muvattupuzha, Idukki, Devikulam, Thodupuzha and Peermade — at least three are facing severe agrarian and ecological crises like decrease in productivity of plantation crops, forest fires, wild animal attacks and unregulated tourism, and yet there seem to be no concerted effort to address this issue. Interestingly, both Joyce George and Dean Kuriakose have won from this constituency once. The LDF campaign is more vocal in terms of road rallies while the UDF has been running a campaign based on the past achievements of the sitting MP, Kuriakose. “It is true that Joyce rode the wave of the anti-Madhav Gadgil campaign, but post 2018 floods, none of the ecological issues has been resolved,’’ says M J Babu, a Munnar resident. A walk through Munnar — which still boasts cool weather in the height of summer — is a huge disappointment. What should have been a shining jewel in the crown of Idukki, this township today has turned into one of the shabbiest tourist destinations in the country. The city centre reeks of plastic and food waste lying on pavements, with no overall illustrative map to guide many heritage places like the hundred-year-old St Antony’s church. The three streams — Muthirapuzha, Nallathani and Kundali — from whose confluence Munnar got its name, have plastic bags floating all around. As the rivers flow downstream the waste gets deposited on its banks. “The elected panchayat members are interested only in giving approvals for buildings because that is how they earn money,” activist M N Jayachandran says. The forest department too is struggling to douse the increasing number of forest fires this year. Last year 90 hectares of forest was lost due to man-made forest fires. Arjunan, a tribal guard who was posted near Muthuvan Kudi forests, warns: “Man will perish in the hall of fire that he has set aflame; that is the law of nature.” https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kochi/idukkis-man-animal-conflict-the-elephant-in-the-room/articleshow/109570541.cms