Siddapur Bandh on 31st August Against Elephant-Human Conflict

Siddapur, Aug. 18: A decision has been taken to hold a bandh and protest in the area around Siddapur on Ta. 31 demanding a permanent plan to prevent elephant-human conflict in the area around Siddapur.

A meeting was held in the Siddapur Gram Panchayat Hall under the leadership of the Karma Sangha and the Karnataka State Farmers' Association in the presence of various organizations demanding a permanent plan to prevent elephant-human conflict. The office bearers of various organizations who participated in the meeting spoke and took a unanimous decision and decided to protest by closing all the shops in the major villages where elephant-human conflict is taking place, such as Ammatthi, Siddapur, Maldare, Palibetta, Bajekolli, Nellihudikeri, on Ta. 31 from 10 am to 3 pm.

Addressing the meeting, labor leader P.R. Bharath said that in the wake of the incident where a laborer was killed by a wild elephant in Yadur village last week, the forest department officials, yielding to public protests, have obtained permission to capture three wild elephants. However, he expressed dissatisfaction that there are hundreds of wild elephants roaming in the coffee plantations and capturing three of them would be of no use. He accused the central and state governments of lacking willpower to prevent the elephant menace. The bandh call has been given to warn against governments that have not found a permanent solution. Innocent people are being attacked by wild elephants and the government is washing its hands of them by giving only Rs 20 lakh. He expressed dissatisfaction that due to this, there is no value for life.

An atmosphere has been created in the areas around Siddapur as soon as evening falls. In order to warn the government, Ta. On the 31st, all the shop fronts in the areas around Siddapur such as Palibetta, Bajekolli, Ammatthi, Maldare, Nellihudikeri will be closed and a protest will be held.

Karnataka State Farmers' Association District General Secretary Chetrumada Sujay Bopaiah said that the organization had registered a case against the then District Chief Conservator of Forests in connection with an incident in which a farmer died after being attacked by wild elephants in Siddapur eight years ago. Now, due to the excessive wild elephant infestation in the areas around Siddapur, crops grown there are not available, and attacks on humans are also continuing. Previous forest department officials had informed that there are approximately 300 wild elephants in private coffee plantations in the district. However, they expressed dissatisfaction that the government is not taking it seriously and is acting in a negligent manner. The people of the district are not feeling well due to the wildlife infestation. In this context, they called on the people of the district to organize and fight against this without politics. The district is paying a lot of tax money to the government. But he accused the governments of not responding to the problems of the district.

District labor leader Mahadev said that human-elephant conflict is continuing in the district, and innocent people are getting killed by wild elephants. It is imperative for workers and farmers to fight together. He accused the forest department of misusing government money by driving wild elephants from one plantation to another in the district under the pretext of an operation to drive them into the forest. He demanded that the fight against human-elephant conflict should continue continuously and that the government be pressured to formulate a permanent plan.

Chenanda Ajit Poonacha, president of Karnataka State Farmers' Association Amati Hobli, said; Although human-elephant conflict is continuing in the district, the district's Chief Conservator of Forests is not preparing an action plan to prevent the conflict late, he complained. Siddapur is a sensitive area due to the increasing number of wild elephants in the surrounding areas. A situation has arisen where vehicles cannot ply in the evening. He demanded that a sub-zonal forest office be started in the Siddapur area and sub-zonal forest officers be appointed. He called on the plantation owners and workers to take to the streets and protest on the bandh day organized in the areas around Siddapur on the 31st and warn the government. Suresh N. K., president of the Swabhimana faction of the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike, spoke and said that there is no benefit in the forest department officials carrying out operations against wild elephants; the wild elephants should be captured and relocated or else the struggle should be continued throughout the district. He said that the struggles should not be temporary but should be continuous and it would be possible to draw the attention of the government.

N.D. Kuttappan, leader of the plantation workers' association, spoke; The ministers of the previous government had promised that the wild elephants would be relocated to the Nagarhole forest by trapping them. But they did not implement it and were negligent and now wild elephants are roaming in the coffee plantations. He urged the central and state governments to respond to the problem by finding a scientific solution and formulate a permanent plan.

Siddapur Chamber of Commerce Association President P.M. Rajkumar, Auto Drivers Association P.R. Vinod, office bearers of labor unions A.C. Sabu, H.B. Ramesh spoke in the meeting.

The meeting decided to hold a bandh on 31st from 10 am to 3 pm.

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