Farmers upset as wild boars from across border damage crops

Already reeling under the devastating floods and erosion of farmland, farmers cultivating fields across the barbed fence along the International Border with Pakistan are now facing fresh losses. They are worried as wild boars from across the border are damaging their remaining paddy crop.

Farmers say while wild boars continue to destroy standing crops, they are helpless as the Border Security Force (BSF) does not allow installation of electric cobra wires to prevent their entry and the government rules prohibit the killing of such animals.

“Wild boars from Pakistan enter Indian territory along water bodies, including Sakki Nallah, a seasonal rain-fed stream, and the Ravi river,” said Harjit Singh, a farmer from Kakkar village. He said the recent floods had washed away temporary fences, facilitating the entry of animals into fields. “Only 20 per cent of the crop has survived the floods and now even that is being destroyed by wild boars,” he rued.

Jasbir Singh, another farmer, said wild patches across the barbed fence were acting as a corridor for wild animals. “Since we are not allowed to go across the fencing from dusk to dawn, our crops remain unattended. Every year, herds of Pakistani wild boars enter and destroy the standing paddy,” he said, adding that earlier farmers had used cobra wire for protection, but the practice was later banned on security grounds.

Ratan Singh Randhawa said around 2,000 acres of land belonging to the Forest Department, the Punjab Government, and other agencies lay unattended across the fencing. “A thick wild growth has turned these tracts into ideal hiding spots for wild boars. The government must frame a policy to tackle this menace that is inflicting huge losses on farmers,” he urged.

Farmers cultivating tracts across the fencing, who had already seen their livelihoods battered by the floods, now fear their surviving harvest may not withstand the marauding herds.