Human-wildlife conflict claimed 460 lives in Kerala in past 5 years, govt tells Rajya Sabha

The ministry’s written response came in reply to a question from the Indian Union Muslim League’s P V Abdul Wahab, who enquired about mortalities and injuries linked to animal attacks in Kerala.

Kerala recorded 82 such deaths in 2024, 100 each in 2023 and 2022, and 104 and 74 in 2021 and 2020, respectively. In 2024 alone, 926 people were injured in conflicts with animals. Last week, the ministry said that 102 people had died due to elephant attacks in the state.

In a separate response to Congress MP Pramod Tiwari regarding attacks and deaths caused by elephants, the ministry said that 629 people had died from elephant attacks in 2023-24. Between 2019-20 and 2023-24, there were 2,833 fatalities due to elephant attacks.

The recent elephant attacks in Wayanad follow a fatal tiger attack on January 24 on a tribal woman who was working at a coffee plantation. The elephant attack on Wednesday resulted in the death of Balan, 27, who was found dead in Attamala, a village affected by the July 2024 Wayanad landslide.

The issue of human-wildlife conflict has been raised in the Rajya Sabha by members of Kerala’s Opposition Congress as well as the ruling CPM. Both parties are advocating amendments to the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 to prioritise human safety.

The CPM’s V Sivadasan said the Union government should amend the “anti-human” nature of the laws, which he claimed neglect the rights of people. “The Wildlife Protection Act has become a human life destruction act. People are unable to carry out agricultural work, leading to significant economic losses each year. Wild boars are destroying banana, ginger, turmeric and tapioca and other tuber crops. People are afraid to work in rubber, coffee and tea plantations. It is a big issue,” he said.

His intervention was supported by MPs such as A A Rahim, John Brittas, P P Suneer, Ravi Chandra Vaddiraju, Sujeet Kumar, Fauzia Khan and Kanimozhi.

Prior to Sivadasan, Congress MP Jebi Mather Hisham raised the issue of the tiger attack during Question Hour on February 4, asking Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav about measures taken to prevent such incidents. Yadav responded that the state government is empowered under the Wildlife Protection Act to manage animals that have attacked humans.

The human-wildlife management issue has also been discussed by the National Board for Wildlife, India’s premier body on wildlife conservation. In the board’s last meeting on December 21, 2024, Kerala’s chief wildlife warden and top wildlife officials from other states suggested that a national policy should be developed for managing human-wildlife conflict.