Zero compensation drive to clear all wildlife conflict claims by March 31: Minister A.K. Saseendran

Forest Minister A.K. Saseendran has announced a ‘Zero Compensation Drive’ to clear all pending claims related to human-wildlife conflict before March 31.

Addressing a press conference here on Thursday (February 26, 2026), Mr. Saseendran said all eligible applications for compensations and relief assistance will be cleared within the deadline. The initiative is intended to ensure that no compensation claim remains pending by the end of the financial year.

According to him, the government has already disbursed ₹72.52 crore as compensation since declaring the issue a State-specific disaster in March 2024.

Highlighting the efforts undertaken by the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government in forest and wildlife conservation, Mr. Saseendran pointed to a sharp decline in deaths due to wildlife attacks over the last decade. In 2014-15, a total of 135 deaths were reported, of which 119 were due to snakebite. In 2025, 26, total deaths dropped to 44, of which 18 were attributed to snakebite. The fall represents a reduction of about 67% in overall deaths and 85% in snakebite fatalities, he said.

In addition, 28 rapid response teams, including nine newly formed teams, have been deployed across the State. Besides, 420 primary response teams comprising 3,945 volunteers have been constituted in 171 panchayats that faces high levels of wildlife conflict.

He also stressed on the government’s efforts to support residents living near protected areas, referring to the Supreme Court’s ruling on the eco-sensitive zone issue that had remained unresolved for over two decades. The court reduced the mandatory buffer zone from 10 km to 1 km, excluding residential areas from its purview.

Eco-restoration policy

On ecological restoration, Mr. Saseendran said the government has been implementing a eco-restoration policy by gradually removing exotic monoculture plantations such as acacia, eucalyptus and mangium. Such areas have been converted into grasslands and replanted with indigenous species. A total of 2,903.78 hectares of monocrop plantations have been transformed into natural forests as part of the efforts to revive native ecosystems and strengthen biodiversity.

Forest infrastructure has been bolstered during the last ten years, including 570 km of solar-powered electric fencing and an additional 242 km of solar fencing. Other undertaken works include 10 km of rail fencing, 1.611 km of elephant protection walls, 46.78 km of elephant camp structures, 10 km of crash-guard steel rope fencing, 0.80 km of stone walls, 10.88 km of perimeter walls and 0.11 km of steel fencing, according to the Minister.