Udhagamandalam: The Ministry of Forestry installs an early warning system in the distribution of aqualist forest to detect wild elephant movements and curbs the human-elephant conflict, which has claimed 25 lives in the last three years in the Division.
The people were killed in an elephant attack in the distribution of gudallar forests so far this year.
In accordance with the data available with the Ministry of Forestry, Gajah Wild has claimed eight lives in 2018, six of 2019 and seven of 2010 in the division.
The victims of most tea plantation workers or people who live in villages along the edge of the forest or wild elephant migration pathways.
Most of the conflict, according to the data, occurred in the early hours of hours or late at night.
Komkaram Komu, district forest officers, said the conflict of the elephants in the distribution of the forest forest was a matter of concern.
“Of the six ranges of forests in the division, Cherambadi and Nilambur are very susceptible to conflict because they accommodate most elephant migration paths.” He said they were in the process of installing an early warning system in all of the forest ranges in the Gudalur Division.
, “We have identified conflict points that are vulnerable in all six forest ranges in the division.
Camera traps are also repaired to study the movement of elephants.” Installed on a pole, an early warning system has a sensor to detect wild elephant movements in a 30ft radius.
If the device detects the elephant movement, it will sound alarm that can be heard for a distance of 1 km to remind the local residents in the area about the presence of animals.
At least 25 such devices have been installed in places close to the quarters of tea plantation workers and tribal hamlets in six forest ranges.
A senior forest official in Chennai said the early warning system would reduce severity and seriousness of human-animal conflict.
He also said they also used drones for pepper sprays or produced honey sounds to expel wild elephants.
Meanwhile, said they would continue to adopt traditional methods to pursue elephants that deviate to human habitat and the tea plantation area away to be forests.