Instead of culling wild boars to check their population, the tribal communities shall be permitted to hunt them for food for a limited period, suggested a draft policy document on addressing human-wildlife conflicts.
The policy document, ‘Empowering forest-fringe panchayats: A policy reflection on the solution to the shrinking human-wildlife interface in Kerala’ was prepared up by the Research Unit on Local Self-Government, Centre for Development Studies (CDS), Thiruvananthapuram.
The document, which suggested shifting the wild boar from Schedule 3 of the Wildlife (Protection) Act to Schedule 5, noted that permitting hunting for food for a limited period would address the food security aspects of local communities. It could even attract a market for wild meat and for value-added products based on it. The Meat Products of India, a government institution, which process and supplies meat in Kerala, could be roped in to handle the hunted boars. The hunting rights must be limited to local tribal communities and it should be closely monitored. It shall be called off once the animal population declines, it suggested.
Compensation
The document suggested fair and adequate compensation to farmers who lose crops to wild animals. The quantum of compensation shall be increased and extended to crucial food crops, tubers and vegetables too.
The forest-fringe panchayats should be empowered to work as equal partners with the Forest and Revenue Departments in all forest rejuvenation activities in the buffer zone. The local bodies should be empowered to appoint guards to prevent animal intrusion when the breakdown of existing animal-deterrent mechanisms is confirmed, it suggested.
Invasive species
Steps for controlling the infestation of alien invasive species in forested landscapes shall be taken as such species have significantly eroded ecosystem functions, including the food availability for herbivores.
The spread of invasive species has a direct role in escalating human-wildlife conflicts in forest fringes, the document noted.
