Perumbavoor: A herd of wild elephants tried to run over the solar fencing by demolishing the concrete pillars. The elephants had tried to destroy two rows of solar fencing that were installed from Kodanad Abhayanryam to Panamkuzhi.

The elephants have apparently learned the trick of destroying the fencing by uprooting trees and pushing them against it. As there aren’t too many trees in this area, the forest department had, a few years ago, erected concrete pillars here to build iron fencing. Although the elephants damaged ten concrete pillars, they didn’t fall on the solar fencing.

Two rows of solar fencing, stretching in a radius of three kilometres from Chalipara, were installed by the panchayat through public funds. Meanwhile, the one installed by the block panchayat stretches to 4.5 kilometres. Solar fencing is primarily used to prevent wild elephants from encroaching on human settlements. However, the animals often manage to damage the fencing and intrude on human habitats.

Wild elephants leave their forest abode and encroach on human settlements mostly during summer. Meanwhile, the local residents say that the elephants wouldn’t intrude on their villages if enough water and food were available in the forest.