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Wildlife census to help in reducing damage to crops in HP

Though the Himachal Pradesh government hasn’t been able to provide relief to the farmers and the general public from monkey…

Wildlife census to help in reducing damage to crops in HP

Representational Image (Photo: Getty Images)

Though the Himachal Pradesh government hasn’t been able to provide relief to the farmers and the general public from monkey menace, the Forest Department has now started census of wild animals as Neelgai, Sambar and wild boar who causes damage to crops.

The state Forest Department had tied up with the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) to conduct census of these wild animals.

In first phase, the census is being conducted in Una district and thereafter, the survey will be conducted in other districts which fall under Shivalik range or lower Himachal areas bordering Punjab and Kandi area.

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“We have tied up with the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) to conduct census of these wild animals,” Dr GS Goraya, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Wildlife Wing told The Statesman.

After the completion of survey and assessing damage to crops, the state government would request the Union government to declare them as vermin. It is worthwhile to mention here that the upper region of Himachal Pradesh is facing the scourge of menace while the districts as Una, Sirmaur, Bilaspur and Kangra and some areas of Solan are affected by Neelgai, Sambar and wild boar.

While 149 tehsils of the state are affected by the monkey menace, but the plans to curb their population have not borne desired fruits. In some parts of these districts, the farmers have abandoned farming due to loss to crops by these wild animals every year.

The issue has been raised by Himachal Kisan Sabha (HKS) time and again with the farmers’ body asking the government to declare them vermin and eliminate the threat to the livelihood of over 7 lakh families.

“Over 70 per cent agricultural land in HP is affected by the wild animals menace that causes damage to the tune of Rs 2,000 Crore every year,” Kuldeep Tanwar, the state president of HKS told The Statesman.

As per estimates, around 2,301 panchayats in Himachal Pradesh are affected by wild animals and the area affected by wild animals as Neelgai, Sambar and wild boar falls in the lower Shivalik range, he said.

“The losses include loss to crops, man days put in by the farmers and area abandoned due to various reasons including attack by wild animals,” he said, adding at present around 76,000 hectares land is not being cultivated.

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