IPOH, March 30 — A total of 1,736 wild boars and 16,631 monkeys have been culled since last year for disturbing farmers’ plantations and causing disturbances to the public, the State Legislative Assembly was told today.
Perak Health, Science, Environment and Green Technology committee chairman Mohd Akmal Kamarudin said the Perak Wildlife and National Parks Department carried out 36 operations last year and seven operations this year.
“In 2021, a total of 1,469 wild boars and 14,375 monkeys were disposed of.
“For the year 2022, as of March, a total of 267 wild boars and 2,256 monkeys have been successfully disposed of,” he said during his winding-up speech at the state assembly here.
Mohd Akmal said the operations were carried out to sharply reduce the disruption caused by certain wildlife.
“It will also help to reduce the wildlife population that have been causing the disturbance and damages,” he added.
Mohd Akmal also said the authorities will be adding up more firearms as part of this year’s strategy in curbing the issue of wildlife, especially wild boars and monkeys, which have been destroying farmers’ crops.
“An application for the addition of a 13-barrel firearms permit has been sent to the Perak Police Firearm Unit,” he said.
“In addition, the department also proposed the abolition of the moratorium on wild boar hunting from January to June which is still in force at this time,” he added.
He also said the authorities will carry out the operations frequently with the cooperation of leaders and residents' associations.
“However, there are some constraints faced in the management of these crop enemies. For example, Wildlife Department can no longer conduct operations with other agencies, especially Rela, as their firearms permits have been revoked.
“The department has no objection if the Ministry of Home Affairs allows Rela’s involvement in the program to help eliminate crop enemies and return weapons to Rela.
“For information, the department had indeed worked with the Rela team in the same operations before the license was frozen. With this cooperation, Rela can indirectly help the department in controlling the problem of crop enemies,” he explained.
Mohd Akmal also blamed improper waste management as the cause for this problem as the wild boars have been surviving on the waste.
“Furthermore, there are also those who like to feed wild boars and monkeys. This will make the animals more comfortable and continue to enter these areas,” he said.
He advised residents to install fences or barriers around their farm grounds to deter wild boars from entering their land and destroying their crops.
“Residents are also advised to report to the authorities if there is a disturbance of wildlife in their areas so that action can be taken immediately,” he said.
