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In a firm response to Kerala’s repeated appeals, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has once again rejected the state government’s request to declare wild boars as vermin. The Ministry has turned down Kerala’s proposal multiple times despite ongoing concerns in the state over crop damage and human-animal conflict caused by wild boars.
In a recent communication, Union Minister for Forest and Environment Bhupendra Yadav said that the Union government will not consider Kerala’s request to list wild boars as vermin. He further added that the state's parallel demand to reclassify monkeys, specifically the bonnet macaque, from Schedule I to Schedule II of the Wildlife Protection Act, would also not be accepted.
Yadav also reportedly said that animals such as the tiger and elephant will continue to remain on the protected list under the existing legal framework.
Kerala Forest Minister AK Saseendran has pointed out that the Union government’s reluctance to declare wild boars as vermin is causing legal hurdles in managing the population. According to the Minister, 243 panchayats across 54 Assembly constituencies in the state have reported being affected by the wild boar menace.
Locals in some places have been resorting to setting up illegal electrified wild boar traps. On June 7, a 15-year-old boy died after being electrocuted when he accidentally came in contact with the trap.
With the Union government's latest refusal, Kerala’s scope for intervention remains constrained under the current wildlife protection laws.
There are 18 species of pigs across the globe, of which 10 are endangered. No endangered species are found in Kerala. Among the wild boars, only three subspecies out of 17 are found in India. Wild boars in Kerala are known to destroy coconuts, plantains and all kinds of tubers.
Section 62 of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, allows for states to seek permission to declare certain animals as vermin. The Union government can grant permission through a notification, after which that particular wild animal can be included in Schedule V of the law, which states that they have no protection.