Green fodder banks to curb man-animal conflict

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-09-18/flora-fauna/33924790_1_green-fodder-man-animal-conflict-forest-department

COIMBATORE: In a bid to reduce the growing incidence of man-animal conflict in Coimbatore region, the Tamil Nadu forest department plans to develop green fodder banks in key elephant populated areas in the district at a cost of Rs 3.45 crore.

According to district forest officer V Thirunavukarasu, green fodder banks would be developed in a total of 240 hectares identified in Solakarai near Walayar, Athikadavu near Karamadai, Sadhanakola and Odanthurai in Mettupalayam, Thanikandi in Boluvampatti, Koodapatti in Periyanaickenpalayam and Kulukumaduvu near Sirumugai.

Planting of trees would begin with the onset of the North East monsoon. Once the trees reach maturity, they will ensure rich fodder for jumbos during dry months. With adequate fodder inside the forest area, the animals will not be inclined to stray outside.

Saplings have already been developed in a special nursery at Mettupalayam. They include pipel, banyan, wild mango, wild jack fruit, bamboo and teak varieties. Seeds of two grass varieties will also be sowed in the forest areas. A few water ponds will be created close to the green fodder banks.

``Initially, we planned to plant the trees in June with the arrival of South West monsoon. But the failed monsoon changed our plans," said Thirunavukarasu. According to him, this is the first phase of the project and areas like Thondamuthur, Anaikatti, Kurudampalayam and Mangarai in the Western ghats will be included in it in the next phase.

The fodder bank idea was formulated after chief minister J Jayalalithaa suggested that steps be taken to ensure green fodder inside the forests. A government order in this regard was released on December 14, 2011 by principal secretary to government C V Sankar. The GO permits the forest department to create fodder plantations to improve wildlife habitats for a five-year period commencing January. The amount released for this purpose across is Rs 22 crore.

The project would focus on cultivating grass and trees of indigenous species. "There would be two kinds of plants and trees, those which can meet immediate consumption needs and those which moderately grow but ensure a permanent fodder bank,'' said Thirunavukarasu.

The department is also building salt licks near water holes in the migratory corridor to supplement the mineral requirement of elephants with the expectation that the jumbos will stay within the restricted migratory route and not stray into human habitations. Construction of check dams and percolation ponds will satisfy the thirst of animals in summer and also facilitate storage in water bodies, the official said.

"An adult elephant consumes 240kg to 260kg of food every day. It spends at least 18 hours grazing. Over 70% of its food needs are available in the reserved forest. In Coimbatore, the green bank will come up in 100 hectares in reserved forests frequented by elephant herds," said Thirunavukarasu.

‘Implement ban on jallikattu’

Animal welfare organisations such as People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and Federation of Indian Animal Protection Organizations (FIAPO) have written to Union Environment Minister Jayanthi Natrajan requesting her to implement her ministry’s notification which bans jallikattu, a bull taming festival, even as many bulls and competitors were injured during the event this year. 

Organisations from all over India such as In Defence of Animals (IDA), Plant and Animals Welfare Society (PAWS), International Animal Rescue Goa, Foundation for Animals Nellore, JBF (India) Trust Guwahati, International Animal and Birds Welfare Society, Anantapur, among others, have written to Natrajan on the issue as violations of the Performing Animals (Registration) Rules were duly noted by some organisations during the event. 

In fact, the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) had identified bulls as performing animals through a notification in 2011, which implicitly means a ban on jallikattu but the Madras High Court’s Madurai bench allowed the event to take place in Tamil Nadu this year. “We are asking the MoEF to defend its own notification in court as there can be no ruling which goes against a central notification such as the one issued by them. We compliment them on such a forward-looking notification but expect its implementation soon,” said FIAPO chief executive officer Arpan Sharma. 

The organisations said every year, during the festival, bulls are harassed, beaten, prodded and tormented. In fact, PETA conducted investigations at five jallikattu events and found that bulls were tied tightly, causing them severe discomfort, they were hit with fists and their tails pulled and twisted and they were wrestled to the ground. All these are violations of Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act, the organisatons said. 

According to news reports cited by the organisations, 19 competitors and 23 bull tamers were injured at a jallikattu in Avanuyeapuram on January 15, where 257 bulls were used. At another event near Tirupati, bulls were forcibly given country liquor and 18 persons were injured. 

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/implement-ban-on-jallikattu/905113/2

'Jallikattu not a festival but a commercial event'

Sriram Balasubramanian

Trashing Tamil Nadu's bull-taming festival, Dr S Chinny Krishna, vice chairman Animal Welfare Board of India, say that Jallikattu is not just unjust to the bulls but is also illegal the way it is carried out. He spoke to Sriram Balasubramanian.

What are your thoughts on the Jallikattu festival in southern India?
It is not a 'festival'. A festival or gala is an event, usually and ordinarily staged by a local community, which centres on and celebrates some unique aspect of that community according to a commonly accepted definition.

Jallikattu is today a purely commercial event at which bulls are tortured. Only money, liquor and gambling play an important part in the event. As a proud Tamilian, I am ashamed that this takes place on the holy land on which our most revered sage, Tiruvalluvar, strode talking about kindness to animals.

Why do you think it has been practiced for such a long time?  
Sati and child marriage have been practiced for an even longer time.

Do you think the Supreme Court ruling has been followed by the people?  You are fully aware that it has not been followed by the administration or the people. You are aware that gross cruelty took place even last year and the Indian Express even published a close-up photograph of a participant rubbing chilli powder into the eyes of a bull. You are also aware of the number of deaths of participants and spectators, not to mention injuries to the terrified animals.

Is it good enough to provide mere guidelines?
This should be good enough if people and the administration are law abiding. However, in India where we have some of the best legislation in the world, enforcement is so lax or non-existent that the usual procedure seems to be to go back to the courts to get a direction to see that the law is enforced.

Is a step like banning this festival too radical in nature?
Of course not. We must learn to have zero tolerance for injustice in any form and Jallikattu comes not only as injustice to the bulls but is also illegal the way it is carried out. However, even if it were legally allowed, one cannot condone cruelty to animals, especially in the name of sport or religion.

Have you looked at the Spanish model where the Spanish still have bullfighting since it is a part of their cultural fabric?
Whether Spain uses bullfighting or not is irrelevant. We have a culture that is older than Spain's and my culture does not include cruelty. However, since you have mentioned it, may I tell you that the last bullfight in Catolonia in the heart of bullfighting territory was on January 3, since Catalonia has voted to ban bullfighting.

 

How do you plan to monitor this year's Jallikattu?
We are doing our best to ensure that the government of India notification on July 11, 2011, prohibiting the use of bulls as performing animals is enforced and that Jallikattu does not take place.

All district collectors have been repeatedly reminded about the notification and all have been made aware that the use of bulls as performing animals is banned. In the hearings before the Supreme Court, the Attorney General of India, Gopal Subramanium, and a battery of lawyers representing the state of Tamil Nadu in the case filed by the Animal Welfare Board of India accepted that these are indeed performing animals and, consequently, the Jallikattu bulls were got registered by the AWBI for last year's Jallikattu.

The AWBI cannot register them this year in view of the ministry's notification. Not even one of the approximately 1,000 bulls registered last year by us have fulfilled the terms and conditions under which registration was given. Documents as required after registration were not submitted as called for.

What are some of the steps that you intend to take to avert or reduce the impact on the animal during the festival time?  
We intend to stop it completely.

http://www.rediff.com/news/slide-show/slide-show-1-jallikattu-not-a-festival-but-a-commercial-event/20120116.htm 

Jallikattu organisers leave for Delhi

TRICHY: Karu Ambalatharasu, founder-president of the Tamil Nadu Jallikattu Forum, on Wednesday left for New Delhi to mobilise support against the "unlawful notification" issued against the traditional sport event. Before leaving, he told TOI the forum was all set to conduct the annual event as "the essence of it was ingrained in Tamil culture, and there were some vested interests that were trying to exterminate this culture from the State once and for all." Karu said he and his supporters were scheduled to meet Jayanthi Natarajan, minister of state for environment, and also all Tamil MPs to mobilise support for jallikattu.

Meanwhile, despite the July 11 Central notification banning the "game" while a final verdict is awaited from the Supreme Court in the TN government vs Animal Welfare Board of India case, the villagers in Pudukottai, Trichy, Thanjavur areas are busy training their animals for jallikattu. The State organiser of Jallikattu, Ondiraj, who is accompanying Ambalatharasu, said the game was once played throughout the year, and then restricted to three months during the harvest festival, before finally becoming a one or two days' event.

In Trichy district alone, it is now celebrated only in four villages such as Koothaipar, Karunkulam, Navalpattu, and Rettaimalai, he said. Taking exception to Hema Malini's stand against jallikattu, Ambalatharasu said the Central government should not have buckled under pressure of one woman. While Hema accused that the bull was tortured in the name of jallikattu, Ambalatharasu said, "We love the bull as if they are our own children, and what is more, we adore them like god. Moreover, this is the traditional festival where girls identified their suitors based upon the bravery exhibited at the arena, he added.

In fact, Hema Malini, MP, had written to Union Minister of Environment and Forests, Jairam Ramesh, to stop the cruel game of jallikattu that according to her violated the spirit of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960. Earlier, the Tamil Nadu Regulation of Jallikattu Act No 27 of 2009 had permitted the game, and that was challenged in the apex court. However, the apex court had permitted the game while laying down strict norms for its conduct which included medical check-up for the animals, and a deposit of Rs 2 lakh for each event.

Animal-human conflict: Compensation up

http://newstodaynet.com/newsindex.php?id=24329%20&%20section=6

Tamilnadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa today said relief measures provided for the losses owing to animal- human conflicts have been enhanced. Making a statement under the Tamilnadu  Legislative Assembly Rule 110 in the Assembly,  the Chief Minister said the payment of compensation to the people for loss of life or permanent disability owing  to such a conflict would be enhanced from Rs 1.50 lakh to Rs three lakh.

Further the government would also enhance the payment of compensation for losses of crops, property and cattle. Under this, the government would increase the payment of compensation for crop loss from Rs15,000 to Rs 25,000 per acre and Rs 500 for a damaged coconut tree. The Chief Minister announced a steep hike in compensation for houses damaged by the wild animals. The government had been paying a compensation of Rs 5,000 per house irrespective of the extent of damages. Announcing a change in the structure, Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa said the compensation for a fully damaged concrete and tiled house was increased to Rs 35,000 and that of fully damaged huts to Rs 10,000. She said Rs 5,000 would be paid to concrete and tiled houses which suffer severe damage in attack by wild animals and Rs 2,000 to huts. 'Houses which were partially damaged in the attack will be paid a compensation of Rs 1,500', she added. She said the compensation for the loss of cattle has been hiked to Rs 2,000 from the present Rs 1,000 and that of shepherds and pigs to Rs 1,500 and Rs 1,000 respectively. The compensation for the loss of poultry was also hiked from Rs 30 to Rs 100 per hen. The hike in compensation followed an announcement made in the 2011-12 Budget presented by Finance Minister O Panneerselvam on 4 August. He said population growth and industrialisation have resulted in fragmentation of animal habitat. 'As a result, wild animals often stray out of the forests leading to animal-human conflicts', he said. This was a complex problem to be managed by a multi-pronged strategy of habitat improvement, trap crop management by growing crops preferred by wild animals as fodder inside the forest boundary, capacity building of the villagers, awareness creation and timely payment of compensation to the victims for the loss of human life and damage to agricultural crops and property.