VIRUDHUNAGAR: Wild boars rampaged through around 500 acres of maize fields in several villages in the district in the past few days and incurred farmers a loss of Rs 5 crores in total, the farmers said and filed a petition to the District Collector on Monday.
According to G Sankara Narayanan, a 40-year-old farmer from Kulasekarapuram village, maize crops on his nine acres were destroyed by the wild boars during night time. "I have suffered a minimum loss of Rs 25,000 per acre," he said, adding that the animals destroyed around 50% of the crops in another 10 acres of land he owned.
The farmers said the boars would have grievously injured them if they tried to chase them away. "The animals hide within the bushes on a nearby barren land, and near the Arjuna river during the daytime. Despite many of the fields being fenced, the boars manage to enter the fields. The number of boars attacking our fields has been increasing over the years," they added.
According to O A Narayanasamy, president of the Tamil Vivasyigal Sangam in Virudhunagar, the issue has been persistent in the district for over three years. "Either the officials should take measures to tackle the wild boar menace, or they should give farmers permission to shoot the animals," he urged.