Sunday, 23 March 2025
Sunday, 23 March 2025
Data presented in the Rajya Sabha by the Union environment ministry Friday revealed Kerala has recorded 460 deaths and 4,527 injuries because of human-wildlife encounters between 2020 and 2024. Palakkad district saw the highest number of fatalities, with 101 deaths, followed by Thrissur (56), Malappuram (45), and Wayanad (26).
The data comes a day after three elderly persons died amidst a stampede caused as a result of the two elephants getting agitated following the bursting of crackers during the festival at the Manakulangara Temple near Koyilandy in Kozhikode on Thursday evening. Congress MPs, including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, on Thursday morning, protested in Parliament over animal attacks in Kerala.
On Wednesday, another person had died because of elephant-human conflict in Wayanad district.
In the last 48 hours, four people have died in Kerala because of elephant attacks.
The recent elephant attacks in Wayanad follow a fatal tiger attack on January 24, when a tribal woman working at a coffee plantation lost her life. On February 7, an elephant attack in Attamala—a village affected by the July 2024 Wayanad landslide—claimed the life of 27-year-old Balan.
The growing number of fatalities has ignited political outcry.
“Since December 27, 11 people have been killed by wild animals in Wayanad. It is a very worrisome situation,” Priyanka Gandhi told reporters as the Wayanad MPs and leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi staged a demonstration in Parliament on February 13 over animal attacks in Kerala and protecting coastal areas from sand mining in Kerala.
The Congress-led UDF launched a dawn-to-dusk hartal in Wayanad, blocking roads in protest. Police arrested and removed demonstrators from various parts of the district.
CPI (M) MP V. Sivadasan called for amendments to the Wildlife Protection Act on Wednesday.
“The Wildlife Protection Act has become a human life destruction act. People are unable to carry out agricultural work, leading to significant economic losses each year. Wild boars are destroying banana, ginger, turmeric and tapioca and other tuber crops. People are afraid to work in rubber, coffee and tea plantations. It is a big issue,” Sivadasan said.
State forest minister A.K. Saseendran responded to growing concerns by stating that not all attacks occur in inhabited areas. “The concern should be about why people are going inside the forests. That is what I meant. Everyone except tribal communities requires permission from wildlife officials to enter the forests. I was referring to those who enter without permission,” Saseendran said.
The debate over legislative changes has continued. Congress MP Manickam Tagore emphasised the need for government action. “Under the leadership of Rahul Gandhi, Kerala MPs protested in Parliament today. Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi also took part in the protest, which was regarding the human-animal conflict in Kerala. A lot of human lives have been lost due to this conflict; therefore, we expect the government to take action to protect people living in forest areas.”
CPI MP P. Sandosh Kumar challenged the narrative, arguing that the issue was being politicised. “We cannot use the term human-wildlife conflict because there is no conflict as such. It’s a one-sided attack, in a way. So, the basic thing is that the central law must be amended. And instead of doing that, the Congress party is trying to politicize this issue. We don’t want to make it a political issue. It’s an issue not only related to Kerala but other states also. So, a thorough outlook and revisiting of these portions of the law is the need of the time… Congress cannot simply escape from its own responsibility. They were in power for the last many years but they did not do anything.”
On December 14, 2024, a female engineering student lost her life near Kothamangalam when a palm tree uprooted by an elephant fell on her motorcycle, severely injuring another person. Days later, on December 16, 2024, Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had raised the issue of compensation in Parliament. “A person died and another was severely injured in an elephant attack in my constituency,” she pointed out during Question Hour.
A forest department study in October, 2024 documented 2,771 incidents of human-animal conflict in Kerala over six months, resulting in 22 deaths. Most fatalities were due to snake bites (14), followed by elephant attacks (4), wild boars (3), and a porcupine (1).
With rising fatalities and economic distress, the demand for policy changes is growing. The challenge remains: how to strike a balance between conservation and human safety before more lives are lost.
