As an integral part of our celebration of people and wildlife this October, a talk and discussion on incidents and issues of Human-Wildlife Conflict in and around Coonoor was held at Coonoor Club.
The turnout of around 45 persons primarily consisted of nearby estate owners and managers along with Coonoor Club members and other interested individuals. Individuals were from the following organisations and estates were present: YMCA, Tranquilitea, Citizen Seithigal, Coonoor Merchants Association, Coonoor Club, Nonsuch Tea Estate, Craigmore Plantations, Belmount Tea & Produce Co., Wood Cote Estate, Sutton Estate, and Kattery Estate.
We began with a brief introduction on the NNHS followed by a presentation by Snehlata Nath of Keystone Foundation, also an Executive Member of the NNHS. A. Paulraj, Forest Range Officer, Coonoor spoke of human-wildlife conflict issues within his division and answered questions posed by those present. The dialogue that followed was engaging and filled with a variety of perspectives and solutions for mitigation.
It was additionally suggested that other such forums be organised, including more stakeholders. The NNHS plans on taking this discussion further and organising similar events in Kotagiri and Ooty.
