Process to declare certain wild animals as ‘vermin’ initiated

Team Herald

PANJIM: The State Forest Department has initiated the process to collect data of wild animals damaging agricultural crops and properties so as to declare certain animals as ‘vermin’ (nuisance animal). 

The matter will be placed before the yet to be constituted State Wildlife Board to be headed by the Chief Minister. The tenure of the previous committee ended in September last year.

The Chief Wildlife Warden (CWW) Ajay Saxena on Wednesday said, “Based on the data, government will identify the vermin animals and the same will be sent to the Union Ministry for Environment and Forests (MoEF) for approval, after which rules will be framed to cull or hunt these animals.”

A group of farmers under the banner ‘Progressive Farmers of Goa’ on Wednesday petitioned the CWW proposing four wild animals that could be declared as vermin – wild boar, red faced monkey (Rhesus Macaque), langur monkey (Presbytis Entellus) and porcupine (Hystrix Indica). They said these animals creating a nuisance and damage crops. 

“All these animals are in Schedule 3 & 4 of the Wildlife Act and least endangered category as per IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) and hence permits may be given to cull them so as to save agriculture in the State,” he said.  

Speaking to Herald, Bicholim farmer Rohan Joshi said these animals damage crops and hoped that hunting permits are issued at the earliest to control the overpopulated animals, especially wild boars and monkeys. “If vermin are not controlled, soon local vegetables and farm produce will be extinct from Goa,” he said. 

The ‘Progressive Farmers of Goa’, that had launched a movement in June 2015 to stop the wild animal menace damaging crops, has already petitioned Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar and Forest Minister Rajendra Arlekar, who assured to take final decision at the earliest.