Tension prevailed briefly in the Germalam area in Thalavadi hill region here on Wednesday evening (January 28, 2026) after villagers blocked the jeep of a forest ranger and engaged in a heated argument, protesting the recurring entry of elephants into agricultural lands and the alleged inaction of forest officials.
Villagers said elephants had been repeatedly entering farmlands in the Thingalur, Mavallam and Sujilkarai areas over the past few months, causing extensive damage to crops such as ragi, maize and sugarcane. They alleged that no effective preventive measures were taken despite submitting several complaints to the forest department.
The incident occurred when Germalam Forest Ranger Venkatasalam was on routine patrol in the Sujilkarai area. Villagers gathered and surrounded his jeep, demanding immediate steps to prevent elephants from straying into human settlements. They also complained that forest range staff failed to respond to phone calls made to report elephant movement.
The altercation led to a brief period of unrest in the area before the situation was brought under control. Villagers further alleged that their grievances were ignored by officials and claimed that they were spoken to disrespectfully when they approached forest authorities to lodge complaints.
Published – January 29, 2026 06:32 pm IST
