Wild animal attacks on the rise in Malampuzha

Palakkad: Residents of Malampuzha grama panchayat and the adjoining Malampuzha-Kanjikode-Walayar areas are living under constant fear of attacks by wild animals. The latest incident being the death of an autorickshaw driver Prasad (28) after a wild boar hit his autorickshaw on Saturday.

Wild boars frequent the area as huge quantity of poultry waste and fish waste are dumped on both sides of the road in many parts of Malampuzha grama panchayat.

Undergrowth in the forests also attract wild animals.

“Lack of street lights are compounding the problem,” said a local resident. Nine persons, including a woman, died and 19 seriously injured in the attack by wild elephants in Kanjikode-Walayar areas in the past 18 months. Recently, Swaminathan of Arangottukulambu, who was on his way to work in Kanjikode in the early morning, was killed by a wild elephant. Last year, a physically-challenged woman Abhijan was killed by a wild elephant at Oorulikkattil.

A forest watcher was killed by wild elephants and two other watchers seriously injured in the attack while they were driving away the two wild tuskers which had entered human settlements at Chellankavu and Chempalakara areas of Pudussery forest south section in Walayar two weeks ago.

Manoj, a two-wheeler rider was killed in an attack by a wild boar four years ago.

The local people said that the forest and revenue departments had not taken any action to prevent the frequent wild animal attacks .

District Congress committee secretary S K Anandakrishnan said his party launched mass agitations, including a one-day dharna, last week demanding action to prevent wild elephants from entering human settlements.

BJP state secretary C Krishnakumar, who organized a dharna in front of the Palakkad DFO’s office last week, held discussions with DFO Narendranath Velluri.

“The DFO promised to pay compensation to the victims,” the BJP leader said.