The State government is in the process of installing Early Warning Alert Systems in 30 places to prevent man-animal conflicts, Minister for Forests K T Pachamal told the Assembly on Wednesday. The minister was replying to a call attention motion raised by CPI member M Arumugam on the loss of lives due to man-animal conflicts in his constituency of Valparai.
Pachamal said the government had allocated `2.22 crore during 2011-12 to prevent such attacks in the Valparai area. “As a result of various measures taken by the government, the conflicts have come down to a great extent”, he said.
Animals like wild elephants, cheetahs, bison and bears enter human settlements in search of food, he explained. A security team comprising social activists, women’s self-help groups and forest officials functions in the Valparai area to prevent loss of lives, he added. The Minister further said an electrical fence over 130 km had been erected at a cost of `2.25 crore to protect human settlements.
Between 2012 and 2013, five were killed in man-animal conflicts and in a meeting held in January, people were advised to take precautions by staying in safer places at nights in forests.