Forest Minister AK Saseendran has announced a ‘Zero Compensation Drive’ to settle all pending claims related to human-wildlife conflict by March 31.
Addressing a press conference here on Thursday (February 26, 2026), Mr. Saseendran said that all eligible claims for compensation and assistance would be processed within the stipulated time. The aim of the initiative is to ensure that no compensation claim remains pending by the end of the financial year.
According to him, the government has already paid ₹72.52 crore as compensation after declaring the problem as a state-specific disaster in March 2024.
Mr. Saseendran highlighted the efforts made by the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government in forest and wildlife conservation and pointed out the sharp decline in deaths due to wildlife attacks over the last decade. A total of 135 deaths were reported in 2014-15, of which 119 were due to snakebite. In 2025, 26 total deaths dropped to 44, of which 18 were attributed to snakebite. The decline represents a reduction of about 67% in overall deaths and 85% in snakebite deaths, he said.
Besides, 28 rapid response teams, including nine newly formed teams, have been deployed across the state. In addition, 420 primary response teams comprising 3,945 volunteers have been formed in 171 panchayats facing high levels of wildlife conflict.
He also highlighted the government’s efforts to support residents living near protected areas, citing the Supreme Court’s judgment on the ecologically sensitive zone issue, which has remained unresolved for over two decades. The court reduced the mandatory buffer zone from 10 km to 1 km, excluding residential areas from its scope.
The politics of ecological restoration
On ecological restoration, Mr. Saseendran said the government was implementing a policy of ecological restoration by phasing out exotic monoculture plantations such as acacia, eucalyptus and mangium. Such areas were converted to pasture and replanted with native species. As part of efforts to revive original ecosystems and strengthen biodiversity, a total of 2,903.78 hectares of monoculture plantations were transformed into natural forests.
Forestry infrastructure has been strengthened over the past ten years, including 570 km of solar electric fencing and another 242 km of solar fencing. Other works carried out include 10 km of railway fencing, 1.611 km of elephant protection walls, 46.78 km of elephant camp structures, 10 km of impact steel cable fencing, 0.80 km of stone walls, 10.88 km of perimeter walls and 0.11 km of steel fencing, according to the minister.
Published – 26 Feb 2026 20:59 IST
