Daltonganj: The Medininagar forest division in the district has placed a compensation demand of Rs 38.59 lakh before the regional chief conservator of forests for damage and destruction of crops and houses by wildlife during 2025-26, DFO Satyam Kumar said.“Farmers are expected to make claims for genuine compensation. Any excess claim for crop loss will be scrapped,” he said.Nilgais are a major reason for crop loss, followed by monkeys, sources said. Monkeys also damaged tiled roofs, either in anger or when people refuse to give food, they said. A resident of Daltonganj said monkeys threw the lid of an overhead water tank in his house after they didn’t get water.Overgrazing of livestock in the forests forced nilgais and monkeys to search for food in other places. Asked how overgrazing of livestock could be minimised, the DFO suggested rotational grazing.“Under rotational grazing, a pasture is divided into paddocks. Segmentation is done with either temporary or permanent fencing. Livestock graze in one patch for a week or so before they move on to fresh pasture. Under rotational grazing, the previously grazed patch gets a rest period to regenerate,” he said.Kumar said, “Farmers need to be sensitised about the benefits of rotational grazing.”He also said that pollarded trees, whose branches are systematically trimmed and pruned, can be beneficial for nilgais. Nilgais stray into fields for eating more varied vegetables, sources said. They are able to adapt to arid or semi-arid environments, sources said.
