Elephant deaths turn a jumbo nut to crack

At least 253 wild elephants have died in the state in the past three years. Many of them are suspected to have died of poisoning by farmers in their bid to protect the standing crops from wild elephant raid.
An activist from the Nilgiris, who conducted a study on elephants in the western region of the state, says the animals had to pass through several private plantations during migration.Fearing crop raiding, he says, some farmers keep jackfruits laced with poison to tackle the elephant menace.
He, however, says the poison that the farmers use won’t cause a sudden death. On the contrary, it starts affecting the elephants over a couple of days. According to him, this method is widely practiced by the people who have encroached upon forest and revenue lands to cultivate plantains and jackfruits.
Such plantations are found in Anaikatti in Coimbatore to Bhavanisagar in Erode district and areas such as Velliyangadu, Karamadai, Mettupalayam, Sirumugai and Lingapuram that fall on the stretch. These areas are under the jurisdiction of various forest divisions and officials there report that elephants have died of natural reasons, says the activist.
“These deaths should be probed to bring out the truth. Also, these areas should be declared an elephant sanctuary to protect their habitats and migratory corridors, and brought under the control of single forest division for better management,” he says.
Wildlife veterinarian N Kalaivanan, meanwhile, disputed the activist’s claims and said all elephant deaths in the state were not caused by poisoning. “In some cases, when they don’t get nutritious feed, they start eating invasive species such as prosopis (seemai karuvelan). It will weaken the animal, which would subsequently die.”
Some elephants, he says, die of foot and mouth disease or anthrax.
When contacted, a wildlife official said the state had already constituted a committee to investigate the elephant deaths. “Once the probe is over, we will have a clear picture on the factors that lead to elephant deaths.”