The Forest Department has called for voluntary surrender of illegal country-made guns to curb poaching and shooting of elephants straying into farmlands.
In a public announcement, the department urged people living in villages along forest fringes to surrender any illegal rifles in their possession at the forest range office or to their own village heads. No punitive action will be taken against such persons.
According to the Forest Department, negative interaction between human and elephants along farmlands fringing the forest has led to killing of elephants with guns. In the past three years, 10 such guns were seized.
In an earlier exercise of voluntary surrender of illegal rifles carried out in 2020, jointly by the Forest Department and the police, 38 country-made guns were surrendered in Denkanikottai, Anchetty, Urigam, Jawalagiri and Hosur. In addition, there have been independent seizures in police raids.
The Forest Department has now given a deadline of September 19, 2022 for the surrender of weapons. From September 20 to October 5, raids will be carried out in all remote villages and hill hamlets near the forests. Weapons seized during such raids will invite criminal action under the Arms Act and the Wildlife Protection Act, the Wild Life Warden of Hosur forest division has warned.
