Villagers suggest growing bamboo, fruits in forest

Instead of planting teak and eucalyptus saplings, there is a need to plant saplings of bamboo and fruit-bearing plants inside the forest. This will help in checking the wild animal menace in villages, said villagers in Hosur Gram Panchayat.

The villagers were interacting with a study team that arrived from New Delhi to study the man-elephant conflict.

The villagers said, "Elephants have incurred a huge loss to the farmers in and around Hosur. The forest department officials should chalk out permanent programmes to drive the elephants away. The officials should ensure animals get food inside the forest. More water tanks should be dug inside the forest.'

Hosur Gram Panchayat president Pandyanda Shanthi Somaiah and others were present.