Since 1 January this year, seven people, excluding Babu, lost their lives due to elephant attacks, four due to snakebites, and one each following attacks by wild boar and tiger.
Published Feb 11, 2025 | 2:54 PM ⚊ Updated Feb 11, 2025 | 2:54 PM
Increasing wild animal attack in Kerala. (AI generated)
Synopsis: Of late, Kerala has been witnessing an alarmingly high rise in deaths due to human-animal conflicts, especially in high-range districts such as Wayanad and Idukki. From 1 April 2024 to 11 February 2025, 59 people in Kerala lost their lives following wild animal attacks. The state government has significantly increased its budgetary allocation to mitigate such conflicts and ensure the safety of people living near forest regions.
A 54-year-old man who went missing four days ago while collecting forest resources was found dead in the Kulathupuzha forest range in the Kollam district of Kerala on Tuesday, 11 February. The deceased had been identified as Babu.
While locals alleged that he was trampled to death by a wild elephant, forest officials said that they are yet to confirm the same.
Sources stated that confirmation of a wild elephant attack can only be made after the postmortem examination. They also noted that the possibility of murder or suicide cannot be ruled out.
In another incident, a man lost his life in a wild elephant attack in Noolpuzha in the Wayanad district. The deceased has been identified as Manu (45), who was attacked while returning from a shop on Monday evening. His body was discovered in a field near the forest on Tuesday morning.
Forest officials reached the spot after being alerted. They also located his wife, who had been with him at the time of the attack and had gone missing.
If confirmed, Babu’s death would be the sixth in Kerala due to wildlife attacks in February alone. According to the data of the state government, a total of 13 people have lost their lives due to human-animal conflict in 2025.
Babu’s clothes were first found near the Adiparamba Sasthamnada forest path, leading to a search by relatives and villagers. Later, his body was located near a stream.
Due to the difficult terrain, forest officials, police, and grama panchayat authorities could not immediately reach the site. However, officials have assured that the body will be recovered on Tuesday itself, and a post-mortem will be conducted.
Further, authorities have urged the public not to go to forest areas, citing safety concerns, as elephants are increasingly distressed due to high temperatures and water scarcity, which may ultimately result in attacks.
Of late, Kerala has been witnessing an alarmingly high rise in deaths due to human-animal conflicts, especially in high-range districts such as Wayanad and Idukki.
The tiger attack, in the Panacharakolli area of Wayanad in January gained national prominence since the tiger not only killed a woman but also consumed parts of her. Later, the tiger, which attacked a Rapid Response Team (RRT) member also, was found dead.
It succumbed to injuries, reportedly caused by a territorial fight with another tiger.
Since 1 January this year, seven people, excluding Babu, lost their lives due to elephant attacks, four due to snakebites, and one each following attacks by wild boar and tiger.
From 1 April 2024 to 11 February 2025, 58 people in Kerala lost their lives following wild animal attacks — elephant (16), wild boar (8), snake (32), tiger (1), and porcupine (1).
According to the data released by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change on 22 July 2024, 486 lives were lost in wild animal attacks from 2019-2020 to 2023-2024 fiscal years — 92 in 2019-2020, 88 in 2020-2021, 114 in 2021-2022, 98 in 2022-2023 and 94 in 2023-2024.
It is also to be noted that a significant number of these deaths were caused by snakebites — 71 in 2019-2020, 52 in 2020-2021, 65 in 2021-2022, 48 in 2022-2023 and 34 in 2023-2024.
On 1 April 2024, Biju Mathew (52) was killed by a wild elephant in the Ranni forest range of the Pathanamthitta district.
On 8 May 2024, Mukesh, a photographer with the Mathrubhumi daily, lost his life when he allegedly tried to capture the images of elephants who were drinking water at a river in the Walayar forest range of the Palakkad district. Reportedly, he went there without permission.
On 16 July 2024, a tribal man named Raju MK (48), a native of the Marod tribal settlement in Wayanad who was attacked by a wild elephant two days prior, succumbed to the injuries.
On 21 July 2024, a native of Chinnakanal in the Idukki district, Kannan (50), was killed by a wild elephant after he was caught between a herd near a pond.
On 19 October 2024, Thankayya (65) was attacked by a wild elephant inside a private plantation near the Aryankavu forest range of the Kollam district. He passed away on 6 December while undergoing treatment.
On 11 December 2024, Meenakshi Parameswaran (76) lost her life due to an elephant attack at Shasthampoovam Unnath in the Thrissur district, within the Peechi Wildlife Division at Chimmini Wildlife Sanctuary.
On 14 December 2024, Ann Mary CV (21) lost her life after a tree uprooted by an elephant fell on her, who was riding a two-wheeler, at the Neriamangalam-Idukki Road. Her co-passenger, Althaf, sustained injuries.
On 17 December 2024, Eldhose (40) was killed in an elephant attack at Neriamangalam Range in Idukki district.
On 25 December 2024, Madhavan (65), a worker at Varadikulum Estate in the Palakkad district, was attacked and killed by an elephant while returning home after buying groceries. Madhavan was a resident of Vazhikkumpura in Thrissur.
On 29 December 2024, Amar Ilahi (23) was attacked by an elephant while grazing his cattle in Mullaringad of the Idukki district. Though he was rushed to a hospital in Thodupuzha, he succumbed to his injuries on the way.
On 4 January 2025, Mani (36), a tribal youth belonging to the Cholanaikkan community, was killed deep inside the forest, about 20 km from human settlements in Nilambur of the Malappuram district.
On 8 January 2025, Vishnu (22), a native of Karnataka, was injured in an elephant attack at Pathiri Reserve Forest in Wayanad. Forest officials, who were conducting a nighttime patrol, found him injured and carried him to the forest path before transporting him in a forest department jeep to Mananthavady Medical College. However, he passed away on the way.
On 15 January 2025, Sarojini (50) was attacked and killed by an elephant while collecting forest resources with a group in Nilambur of the Malappuram district.
On 6 February 2025, Vimalan (57), a resident of Champakad tribal settlement in the Idukki district, was killed in an elephant attack.
On 10 February 2025, an elephant attacked a woman near a stream at Kombanpara near Erumeli in the Kottayam district. The deceased was identified as Sophia (44), wife of Ismail from Nellivilaputhanpura.
With human-wildlife conflict escalating in the fringe areas of Kerala’s forests, the state government has significantly increased its budgetary allocation to mitigate such conflicts and ensure the safety of people living near forest regions. The 2025-26 State Budget has earmarked ₹70.40 crore for tackling human-wildlife conflicts, marking an increase of ₹21.55 crore from the previous year’s provision of ₹48.85 crore.
Elephants continue to pose the greatest threat to human lives and crops in forest-adjacent regions, while tigers, leopards, monkeys, wild boars, and peacocks also contribute to the rising conflicts. The growing incidents have led to a surge in compensation claims. In 2023-24 alone, 8,438 claims were settled, with ₹21.79 crore disbursed as compensation to victims of wildlife attacks.
The latest budget has allocated a total of ₹305.61 crore for the Forestry and Wildlife Conservation sector—an increase of ₹27.55 crore from the previous year. Additionally, ₹45.47 crore is expected as central assistance. The government has emphasized key focus areas such as improving water security in forests, mitigating human-animal conflicts, ensuring the safety of forest-dependent communities, and promoting sustainable forest management as a safeguard against climate change.
Compensation payouts for victims of wildlife attacks have surged in recent years. Between 2016 and 2021, ₹91.36 crore was disbursed, compared to ₹39.52 crore between 2011 and 2016. Since the current government assumed office, ₹129.51 crore has been distributed in compensation for wildlife attack victims.
The budget also proposed achieving zero mortality from snakebites in five years, which would be the final phase of an ambitious move the state began in recent years. The state aims to set up an anti-venom production facility to bring down snakebite deaths to zero. Finance Minister K Balagopal announced that ‘Snake Envenomation Zero Mortality Kerala’ will be implemented in the state.
The increased financial support for human-wildlife conflict mitigation comes amid growing demands from affected communities for immediate intervention. Conservationists and local residents have been urging authorities to implement more effective measures, including improved fencing, early warning systems, and habitat management to reduce encounters between humans and wildlife.
With the budgetary boost, the state government aims to strengthen its response mechanisms and provide timely relief to those affected while working towards long-term solutions for co-existence between wildlife and human settlements.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil.)
