Farmers’ groups in Idukki are hopeful after Forests Minister Shibu Baby John called a special meeting to address escalating human-wildlife conflict in the State. According to officials, the Minister has convened a meeting with representatives from various farmers’ and planters’ associations on Wednesday in Thiruvananthapuram.

Twelve separate organisations are scheduled to attend the meeting. The major associations invited to the meet are Karshaka Congress, INFAM, Idukki Land Freedom Movement (ILFM), All Kerala Catholic Congress (AKCC), V Farm Farmers Foundation, Kerala Independent Farmers Association (KIFA), Karshaka Mahapanchayat, Association of Planters, Malanadu Karshaka Samithy, Rashtriya Kissan Mahasang, Farmers Awareness Revival movement and Cardamom Planters’ Federation.

ILFM chairperson Rasak Chooravelil said the agrarian and planters’ communities welcome the government’s initiative. “We hope this meeting will provide us a platform toexpress our views,” Mr. Chooravelil said. “Most of the State’s forest-related grievances are from Idukki. During the session, we will demand that the Forest department confine wildlife protection strictly to designated forest boundaries, ” he said.

Cardamom Planters’ Federation chairperson Stany Pothen stated that they intend to raise the long-standing Cardamom Hills Reserve (CHR) dispute and mounting crop losses driven by wild animal incursions.“Bonnet macaques, a common monkey species in the high range, are posing great threat to cardamom farmers,” Mr. Pothen said. “Unlike other wildlife, they completely decimate the whole plant, and we currently have no effective means to deter them,” he said.