Tirupati: As wild elephant attacks persist in parts of the erstwhile Chittoor district, forest officials face mounting pressure to fast-track the deployment of trained kumki elephants. Despite the arrival of four kumkis in May this year, with the initiative of Deputy Chief Minister and forest minister Pawan Kalyan, the elephants are still undergoing training and acclimatisation near Musalimadugu in Palamaner mandal.

Kumki elephants are specially trained to assist forest officials in driving wild elephants back into the forest and controlling aggressive herds. They are typically selected from regular elephants and undergo months of intensive training. Once deployed, Kumkis play a crucial role in dispersing wild herds, especially during conflicts in human habitats.

Forest officials say the kumkis require a 30-day conditioning programme to adapt to the local terrain and understand the behavioural patterns of the region’s wild herds. While three kumkis have completed the training, one is still being readied. The team plans to complete the process by June 20 and begin deployment in conflict-prone areas soon after.

To better manage the situation, the Forest Department has begun using drones to track elephant herds in real time. Plans are also in place to fit GPS collars on select wild elephants to monitor their movement patterns more accurately. This data will be used to identify hotspots based on the frequency of attacks, property loss, and crop damage, enabling forest teams to pre-position kumkis in high-risk zones.

Meanwhile, farmers remain vulnerable. In one recent incident, a farmer lost his life to an elephant attack, adding to a growing number of casualties over the past year. To reduce future encounters, forest officials are urging farmers to shift away from crops that attract elephants, such as banana, sugarcane, and sweet corn, and instead adopt alternatives like millets, pulses, or oilseeds. The department is also promoting solar-powered fencing and early warning systems to prevent damage to farmland.

Minister Pawan Kalyan sought weekly progress updates from the forest department and is closely monitoring the situation. If the current batch of kumkis proves effective, officials say additional trained elephants could be brought in from other regions later this year.

While efforts are underway on multiple fronts, the delay in deploying the trained elephants has caused frustration among local communities, who fear further loss of life and livelihood unless immediate action is taken.