Demand for licensed gun holders goes up in Kerala

There is an increased demand of gun-licence holders in Kerala, following the state government’s decision to empower local bodies to sanction killing of wild boars.

Following repeated requests by farmers and residents living in the boar-hit areas around forests—that the boars were a threat to human populace and were damaging the crops, the Kerala government finally empowered the local bodies last month.

However, farmers lamented that the lack of licensed gun holders was affecting implementation of the order effectively.

According to the Kerala Independent Farmers Association (KIFA), which constantly sought measures to curtail the wild boar population, many of the panchayats that faced the wild boar menace did not even have one licensed gun holder, and they had to be brought in from other areas.

Praveen George of KIFA said that in panchayats that faced Maoist threat, the government usually confiscated the weapons, from even those with licences, saying the Maoists could use the weapons against the general population. This meant there weren’t enough licensed gun holders to help with the wild boar killing, which was again affecting lives and livelihood.

Reportedly, a licensed gun holder, from the suburbs of Kozhikode, had killed close to 60 wild boars in the past couple of years. Affected farmers claimed that many of these licensed gun holders were charging exorbitant amounts for killing wild boars. While the rate fixed by the government was Rs 1,000 for killing one wild boar, the excess amount demanded by those with the gun licences, had to be met by the farmers.

Kerala government's decision to empower local bodies to sanction killing of wild boars invited criticism from various animal rights activists, including Lok Sabha MP Maneka Gandhi. The state government, however, justified the decision saying lives and livelihoods were at risk due to the wild boars.