A male elephant was tragically electrocuted after coming into contact with an illegal electric fence near Antthiyur, in Erode district, on Monday. The incident occurred around 3 am when the 15-year-old elephant tried to enter a property owned by M Chinnasamy, an 80-year-old farmer from Athani.
Chinnasamy had set up the electric fence around his land to protect his sugarcane crops. However, the fence was deemed illegal by the authorities. Forest officials from the Anthiyur forest range arrested Chinnasamy for setting up the dangerous fence, and he was later remanded in judicial custody at the district prison in Gobichettipalayam.
In response to the incident, personnel from the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) cut off the power supply to Chinnasamy’s land. This action sparked a dispute between locals, forest department officials, and TNEB. Several farmers protested, accusing the forest department of failing to drive stray elephants back into the forest, while suspending power whenever an elephant death occurred.
One protestor, S Chellamuthu, a local farmer, explained, “The elephants keep returning and damaging our crops.” Other farmers expressed concerns about the power cut, which they feared would harm their coconut trees and crops. “How can we protect our crops and trees without electricity?” asked another farmer.
The protestors eventually ended their demonstration after the district forest officer, K V Naidu, assured them that effective measures would be put in place to drive the elephants deeper into the forest and prevent such incidents in the future.
