Farmers in TN protest against elephant attacks

The farmers of Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri districts of Tamil Nadu are protesting against regular elephant attacks, urging the state forest department to immediately resolve the issue.

P.M. Ramaswamy Gounder, the leader of the Dharmapuri farmers movement, told IANS: "Recently there was an unfortunate incident of three female elephants getting electrocuted while coming into contact with an electric fence erected by a farmer, Murugan.

"While we cannot side with Murugan, but what could he have done to prevent elephant, wild boar, and peacock attacks in his farmland. He has been arrested and jailed and we came to know that forest department is planning a to slap the Tamil Nadu Goondas Act against farmers who erect electric fences. We will protest against this move."

The farmers called upon the forest department to properly remove the waste and growth in the elephant trenches and to erect scientific fences maintaining proper voltage to forbid the tuskers and other wild animals from entering the farmlands.

R. Veluswamy, another farmer leader from the Dharmapuri movement, told IANS that if the forest department tries to enact the Act, they will have to resort to protests like road blockades to bring the issue to the attention of authorities.

The farmers have also said that Dharmapuri has the largest forest area in Tamil Nadu with an estimated 1702 sq.km. of forest land in the district.