Tamil Nadu   

Panther sighted on TEL premises, Forest Department help sought

VELLORE: The Management of Tamil Nadu Industrial Explosives Ltd has sought the help of the Forest Department to catch the panther which some of the employees sighted near its slurry plant.

The TEL plant is located in the midst of thick forest in Christianpet near Katpadi. The sighting of a panther has caused concern among the employees for their safety.

Following a request from the management, District Forest Officer, Vellore, K. Manickam visited the area and advised the management to strengthen the barbed wire fencing around the slurry plant.

He said that he saw pugmarks in the vicinity of the slurry plant. He found that the barbed wire fencing was not perfect, and therefore was likely to give easy access to wild animals. If the fencing was strengthened, wild animals cannot enter the factory, he noted.

Mr. Manickam said that since the panther was a wild animal, it could not be caught under the Wild Life Act since it was roaming about only in its habitat. Being located in a forest area, it was for the TEL management to strengthen the barbed wire fencing.

He said he had advised the employees to go about in groups. Asked about the wild elephant menace reported by farmers in the Gudiyatham area, the DFO said that farmers cultivated crops in forest areas, and were demanding protection from wild elephants.

In Sarangal, a farmer had cultivated mangos in a valley between two hills.

The department had provided a solar fencing to give a mild electric shock to straying animals. He had also arranged for electric fencing along a two-km stretch in the Gudiyatham forest area to prevent the wild elephants from straying into the fields in search of fodder and water, he said.

“In view of the persistent demands from farmers, I have sought funds from the District Administration to implement schemes to tackle the elephant menace”, he said.

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