Tirupati: Wild elephants killed a 55-year-old farmer at Nagavandlapalli
village in Irala mandal of Chittoor district on Tuesday night. The death reignites
concerns over the increasing frequency of wild elephant intrusions in the
undivided Chittoor district.
when he noticed a herd of elephants entering his field. In a bid to protect his
crop, he attempted to drive them away. One of the elephants trampled him.
Assembly constituency, has sparked panic among local residents. They are now
hesitant to venture into their fields after dark. Puthalapattu MLA K. Murali
Mohan visited the bereaved family and said, “The victim’s family will receive
compensation. I will personally take up the matter with forest authorities to
strengthen preventive measures,” he underlined.
According to official records, wild elephant
attacks have claimed the lives of around 25 people in the region since 2011.
Compensation for victims’ families has been doubled from ₹5 lakh to ₹10 lakh by
the N. Chandrababu Naidu administration. Between 2015 and 2024, crops over 203
acres have been damaged by wild elephants. ₹56 lakh out of ₹76 lakh sanctioned have
been disbursed as compensation.
Locals allege that despite the presence of
trained kumki elephants Vinayaka and Jayant, and recent procurement of
additional elephants from Karnataka, forest department has not utilised them effectively
to deal with the wild elephant menace.
A senior forest official acknowledged that a herd
of approximately 15 elephants has been active in the region for the past three
months, repeatedly damaging agricultural land. “A report has been submitted to
the government. We are working on enhancing protective measures,” he maintained.
Forest officials have dismissed allegations of
inaction, pointing out that a special task force has been deployed to track and
manage elephant movements. The team includes forest officers from Chittoor and
Tirupati districts, sub-divisional forest officers, range officers and 10 trained
elephant trackers.
forest-bordering villages, we have implemented a Smart Virtual Fencing system,”
said a forest officer. “This system uses solar-powered GSM and GPS technology
linked to the Tirupati Command Control Room. This enables real-time monitoring
of elephant movement and swift response by local teams,” the forest officer
added.
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