KOCHI: For urbanites, who want an escape from the fast and restless city life, it is a rare opportunity to recharge and rejuvenate. Enjoy the cool breeze, blend with nature, and share space with singing birds, squirrels and monkeys. If lucky, you can also sight marauding wild elephants.
The novel idea launched by the farmers of Vadakkanadu in Wayanad’s Sultan Bathery has become a roaring hit, with youngsters from far-away cities flocking to the village to guard the crops. Paddy cultivation is labour intensive and the farmer has to stay awake during the last 30 days when the crop ripens from milk to grain.
It is a tough task to guard the crop from wild elephants, deer and wild pigs during the season. Often the farmers are forced to harvest the crop before it ripens.
Offering a relief to the farmers who are desperate to save the crops, Paul Mathews, chairman of the High Court-monitored task force for reporting and implementing solutions to man-animal conflict, has introduced volunteers to guard the crops.
Paul Mathews posted a video on social media inviting youngsters to guard crops staying in tree huts on a daily basis. The response was overwhelming. Youngsters from Kozhikode, Ernakulam, Alappuzha and Thrissur flocked to Sultan Bathery to shoulder the responsibility.
“It was a mind-blowing experience,” said Sunil Titto, a software professional settled in Pune. “I saw the social media post and arrived in Sultan Bathery in the first week of December.
There were two youngsters from Thrissur with me. We stayed awake through the night in turns, watching for the entry of elephants. Only some deer were spotted. It was cool and the weather was pleasant,” he said.
“I have been cultivating paddy in my 4 acre farm land for the past four decades. In recent years we are unable to reap the fruits of our labour due to the increasing wild animal menace. Big herds of wild elephants enter the field and destroy the crop during night. The arrival of volunteers to guard the crop has been a big relief,” said Jayamani, a farmer.
Paul Mathews had moved an application in the High Court seeking direction to the forest department to step up vigil during the harvest season. As the department expressed helplessness citing lack of funds, he advised farmers to seek the help of volunteers to guard the crops.
“We have laid down strict guidelines for deployment of volunteers. Youngsters interested in helping the farmers should book the dates through a WhatsApp group and arrive at the spot before 5 am. They should climb atop the tree hut before dusk and should not get down before dawn break. They will not be allowed to lit fire or consume liquor. They should bring food and blankets. We will provide them with torch to keep watch over the fields. If the elephants arrive, they have to make noise and alert the farmers,” said Paul Mathews.
Wayanad has around 17,000 hectares of paddy fields which are surrounded by forest. There are hundreds of tree huts along the fringe areas and the farmers are planning to extend the project to more areas. “After day long labour, we are not able to keep watch on the crops during night hours. So if some people volunteer to keep watch on the wild animals, it will be a big relief. We are not charging the volunteers for the night stay and will provide basic facilities,” said Jayamani.