A Royal Bengal Tiger fled its flooded habitat and strode into the safety of a house during the recent floods in Assam. In Kerala, wild elephants and boars frequently raid farms on the forest fringes at Chittar, Seethathode, Moozhiyar, Pampa Valley, Gavi, Manpilavu, and Neelipilavu. Leopard attacks on humans too have become common.
All these are suggestive of the fact that wild animals are forced to leave their territories when disturbed by man or nature. Their intrusion into human habitations have prompted suggestions that shortage of food and water are forcing the animals to leave the deep forests.
‘Blame the humans’
M.N. Jayachandran of the Society for Prevention of Cruelty against Animals (SPCA) strongly opposes this theory. “Humans are encroaching upon the forest, converting it into farmlands and resorts, and cleverly leave the wildlife at the receiving end. We encroach upon their natural habitats to satisfy our needs and claim possession of the land which in no way belongs to us,” says Mr. Jayachandran.
Pathanamthitta, with 52.6% of its geographical area comprising forests, has been witnessing frequent man-animal conflicts along forest fringes. There were reports of growing incidence of wild animals straying into the human habitations and workers’ camps at Sabarimala, Pampa, Nilackal, and Attathode. All these places were wildlife habitats once.
A female leopard that strayed into the hamlet of Angamoozhy in Ranni was killed by a mob a few years ago. A five-year-old boy was fatally dragged by a leopard from the company of his father and brother at Athirappilly in Ernakulam. A four-year-old boy was killed by a leopard on the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border four years ago. A few years ago, a male leopard that had strayed into Iyravon, a hamlet on the borders of Kummannoor forests in Konni, met with a tragic end at the hands of panicky people.
Prime reasons
Thankachan, a settler farmer at Chittar, laments that instances of leopards, king cobras, wild elephants, and boars straying into human habitations have become more frequent in recent times. S. Shahjahan, a journalist from Chittar, attributes this to poaching, ganja cultivation, and illicit brewing in forest areas.
Excessive human intervention has led to depletion of green cover in many forests. “Granite quarries on the forest borders have altered the forest eco system drastically. Unscrupulous quarrying has resulted in depletion of groundwater,” says Thomas P. Thomas, former member of the Kerala State Wildlife Board.
Dr. Thomas said farming on forest fringes contributed hugely to the frequent intrusion of wild animals.
“Wild animals never stray from their habitats. Instead, humans create such an impression, after encroaching upon their habitats,” he says.
Official records show that Kerala has a forest cover of 11,309 sq km, 29.1% of the State’s total area. Of this, 9,107 sq km comprise reserve forests and 1,837 sq km, vested forests and ecologically fragile lands.
Encroachment of forests, blocking of natural wildlife corridors for building roads, and setting up of resorts have hampered the free movement of wild animals in their own habitats. According to Mr. Jayachandran, people must alter their mindset, conserve forests, and protect wildlife. “We have become self-centred islands. We should reinvent the good old days of co-existence,” says he.
