Tue Jan 07 15:04:50 UTC 2025: ## Kerala Sees Rise in Wild Elephant Deaths, Debate Erupts Over Causes
**Munnar, Kerala –** A rise in wild elephant attack deaths in Kerala has sparked a debate between the Forest Department and farmers’ associations. While the Forest Department reports that seven of eleven deaths this fiscal year (2024-25) occurred within reserve forests, attributing the increase to climate change and increased human-elephant interaction, critics claim the department is downplaying the issue.
According to Chief Wildlife Warden Pramod G. Krishnan, the department is working to mitigate the problem but faces ecological, social, technological, and political challenges. He advises caution when traveling in areas with known elephant presence. However, the department’s figures have been challenged by Alex Ozhukayil of the Kerala Independent Farmers Association (KIFA). Ozhukayil alleges that the increasing number of elephants within the forests, coupled with a lack of food, is driving them into human settlements, leading to the increased fatalities. He criticizes the department for fabricating excuses and points out that victims now include tribal individuals, not just farmers and poachers. One recent death, that of an engineering student killed by a falling palm tree uprooted by an elephant, was not classified as an elephant attack by the department, further fueling the controversy.
First Piper 