Kohima, February 22 (NEPS): Parliamentary Secretary for Border Affairs Y Patton has expressed serious concern over the rampant destruction of paddy and other crops by wild elephants every year particularly in Wokha district.
Talking to NEPS here on Monday, the parliamentary secretary said farmers in the district (Wokha) cannot go to their paddy fields as they are being attacked from time to time by wild elephants. Two persons were killed last year in Wokha district by wild elephants, he said.
The parliamentary secretary said farmers from his range in Tuyi area could not harvest last year due to fear of being attacked by wild elephants in the paddy fields. Because of the failure to properly cultivate and harvest over the years, there have been a sharp fall in the production of crops and paddy, he said. “The farmers are starving and they now start asking rice from us,” Patton said.
Patton recalled that earlier about 70 elephants were there in Bhandari and Sanis areas but in course of time, half of them migrated to Tuyi constituency. He said that the elephants had been there for the last about 30 years and the people had been suffering because of the elephants. “This is a serious issue which cannot be neglected as it severely affects human lives,” he said. “If the situation continues unattended to, things will turn into unwanted development one day.”
Patton has urged the state Forest department to immediately draw up an action-plan as to how the menace would be solved at the earliest.
