The Tamil Nadu Government’s move to scientifically minimise the man – wildlife conflict, which even leads to loss of precious life in Tirunelveli and Tenkasi districts, will be a great relief to the farming community, especially the agriculturists having their ranches close to the Western Ghats.

In the very recent sloth bear attack at Mela Ambur near Kadayam in Tenkasi district on July 31, 61-year-old G. Murugan from a village near Papanasam was mauled to death. The forest personnel, who arrived at the spot to rescue the farmer after receiving alert from the public about this attack, could not even chase the ferocious animal back into the forest.

In a similar attack at Puliyangudi in Tenkasi district, a crop-raiding sloth bear inflicted grievous bleeding injuries on three women farmhands - Ramalakshmi, 42 and Palaniammal, 43, Seihu Ammal, 48 – on August 7 last year.

Lemon grower 69-year-old Thirumalaisamy of Puliyangudi had a miraculous escape when a gaur attacked him in February when he had gone to his farm near the Western Ghats.

Elephants also damage the crops, including coconut, whenever these ‘gentle giants’ invade the ranches.

While the wild animal invasion has become almost a routine affair for the farmers having their fields close to the Western Ghats, the agriculturists having their ranches even in the plains like Alangulam, Maanur, Cheranmahadevi etc. suffer huge crop loss, thanks to the invading wild boar herds.

The continuing wild animal invasion into the farms to cause extensive damage to the standing crops in the ranches along the Western Ghats and man – wild animal conflict has strengthened the farmers’ long-standing demand for erection of solar fence along the border of the Western Ghats to check the entry of the animals.

The State Government’s proposal in the Budget presented on August 5, 2026 for comprehensive human-wildlife-conflict mitigation scheme, incorporating scientific measures such as hanging solar fences and steel wire rope fencing, community-based protection of forests, appointment of forest protection staff, and GPS-enabled vehicles for conflict management, night patrolling, security and monitoring, across 100 conflict-prone villages in Coimbatore, Dharmapuri, Dindigul, Erode, Krishnagiri, The Nilgiris, Salem, Theni, Tirunelveli, Tenkasi and Tiruppur districts may bring the much-needed relief. An amount of ₹20 crore has been allocated for this purpose in the current financial year

“The government, having understood the gravity of this issue, should take steps for erecting solar electric fence from Thirukkurungudi to Sivagiri in Tirunelveli and Tenkasi districts, as this 140 Km-long stretch often witnesses man – wildlife conflict. Besides enduring crop loss, the farmers often suffer grievous injuries and even lose their life in these attacks,” says P. Perumbadaiyar of Thirukkurungudi.

The 70-Km-long Western Ghats between Kadayam and Sivagiri in Tenkasi district that house five dams providing succour to the farming operations of the district also sends in the wild animals to the ranches nearby.

“We’ve lost more than 10 farmers since 2005 to the invading wild animals,” says S.T. Shaik Maideen of Vadakarai, a hamlet close to the scenic Adavinainar Dam.

Areas close to Kadayam, Puliyangudi, Puliyarai, Maekkarai, Achanpudhur, Vadakarai, Vasudevanallur and Sivagiri often witness the invasion of wild animals ranging from wild boar to elephants into the fields in search of food and water.

Vadakarai and Vasudevanallur farmers often have encounter with the wild elephants.

Whenever the Indian Gaurs enter the fields of Puliyangudi, Vadakarai and Vasudevanallur areas, the farmers should be doubly cautious as any attack by these well-built animals, each weighing more than 600 Kg, would be instantly fatal.

Farmers of Kadayam region often face threat from panthers and bears entering their fields. While the bears enter the fields in search of fruits in the orchards of this region, the panthers target the pet dogs of farmers kept in the orchards to ward off invading bears. Moreover, the panthers that used to perambulate for several kilometers everyday even enter the hamlets close to the Western Ghats near Manimuthar Dam to hunt down the pet dogs and the cattle.

And, spotted deer and sambar deer are usual visitors. Though they are harmless, the damage these animals cause to the crops, particularly vegetables, is extensive, the farmers say.

Though solar fences were erected for about 20 Km between Sivagiri and Vadakarai Keezhpidaagai ten years ago with 33% contribution by the beneficiary farmers, lack of proper maintenance made it defunct. The trenches dug along the forest boundary to keep the animals at bay were also not maintained by the forest department properly, says Mr. Shaik Maideen.

Another major demand by the farmers is the removal of wild boar, causing extensive damage to the all types of crops, from the Wildlife Protection Act, as done by the neighbouring Kerala Government.

“This is the only solution for the farmers in the plains who suffer huge loss every year due to wild boars. These crop-raiding animals should be either be hunted down by the forest personnel or the farmers should be empowered to kill these animals whenever they enter the ranches,” D. Abraham, a farmer from Kanarpatti near Manur in Tirunelveli district.

Published - August 05, 2026 07:34 pm IST