The Forest Department is facing allegations of not conducting frequent patrols at Kattanjimalai, a hillock spread over 817 hectares which was declared as a reserve land in 2021, from where a group of men stole a pair of tusks of a dead elephant in a recent case.
Though the Forest Department managed to arrest nine persons involved in the wildlife offence and retrieve the tusks, the incident highlighted alleged lack of surveillance by the Forest Department staff in the area, according to sources.
Residents from the locality accused the Forest Department of not giving proper attention to the place though it is a home to several species of animals, including black-naped hare, wild boar, and spotted deer and birds.
“Hunting of wild boar and other lesser known species is common in the locality. We do not see forest staff conducting regular patrols in the area,” said a farmer from the foothills.
Former Coimbatore District Collector S. Nagarajan declared Kattanjimalai a reserve land under Section 26 of the Tamil Nadu Forest Act, 1882, in June 2021. The area with thick vegetation had been a prime spot of poachers.
In a recent case, a group of nine persons retrieved a pair of tusks from an elephant that was found dead in Kattanjimalai. They confessed to the staff that the rusks were stolen three months ago. The Forest Department and the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau arrested the men based on the specific information that they were planning to sell the tusks.
“When a tusker comes to a place bordering a village, people, including poachers, may come to know about the movement. The staff should have ideally monitored the animal and conducted patrols and stepped up surveillance when the animal disappeared all of a sudden,” said nature enthusiast K. Mohanraj.
Another resident from the locality said that some people were resorting to crude methods, including diluting urea in water and placing the same for deer, which cause damage to crops. “Deer drink the urea mixed water and leave the place. Nobody knows whether they survive or develop health issues,” said the resident.
S. Ramasubramanian, Conservator of Forests (Coimbatore circle), said the department will strengthen the daily patrol system at Kattanjimalai.
