It's a common practice for farmers on fringe forest area to put wire snares or electrify their fence to thwart wild boars and other wild herbivores that destroy their standing crop and harvest obtained after months of toiling. However, resurgence of such protective poaching soon after suspension of wild boar culling operation in Dhaba range can been as ringing of alarm bells.

Choudhari said he had harvested paddy yield and stacked it in his farm. Intruding wild boars were however regularly damaging the stacks of paddy. Hence, he had put fence around the stack and electrified it, said RFO, Dhaba range, DS Rautkar.

He said Adegaon was not covered under wild boar culling operation and, hence their menace in the village is quite high.

Chandrapur forest department had initiated culling of wild boars with the help of well trained shooters. Forest department had justified the move claiming that wild boar menace in Chandrapur district was serious. As poor farmers have no resources to carry out legally allowed shooting of boars, the department had taken up culling of excessively large population of wild boars as an alternative under the provision in law. The culling operation was suspended for evaluation after killing of over 72 wild boars, mostly in Kothari and Dhaba ranges, following the uproar of wildlife activists.

CCF, Chandrapur forest circle, Sanjay Thakre, who was out of station, claimed he was not aware of the incident. He however maintained that if such incident has happened, then it underlines the importance of wild boar culling operation the department had launched.

Thakre hinted of revival of the culling operation by month-end. Shooter NawabShafat Ali Khan is visiting home. After he returns, the department will evaluate the outcome of earlier culling operation and restart the drive by last week of January, Thakre said.