Wild animals at Tirupati gates

As the city expands, man-animal conflicts have become frequent in a territorial battle

Man-animal conflicts are not necessarily about panthers and tuskers barging into human habitations. A glaring example is Karakambadi Road near Tirupati, where humans are at loggerheads with smaller animals and reptiles, thanks to the eastward expansion of Tirupati.

Incidentally, this is the longest stretch of the city road abutting Tirumala hills. The semi-deciduous forest sheds leaves for most parts of the year and appears lush green for just a few months. There are half a dozen major water bodies on the other side of the road, which is home to rich biodiversity in the form of animals, birds, reptiles, etc.

Human trespasses

Moreover, with its expansion into a four-lane highway some years back, this 10-km stretch fast-lane is preferred by pilgrims visiting Tirumala from Kadapa, Hyderabad, Nellore, Vijayawada and beyond for their onward, and return journeys. This is also the road chosen by passengers to and from the Renigunta Airport, considering its wide carriageway that facilitates free and faster movement. Of late, this road is being exclusively used by VVIP convoys.

The recent death of a python on this stretch brought the focus once again on how harmless creatures fall victim to man’s expansionist attitude. The reptile had apparently tried to cross the road from a water body towards the hills, when it was either run over by a vehicle or stoned on sight. According to local practice, villagers attempted to burn the dead snake as a form of cremation. “It was painful to see the dead serpent. Most snakes are non-venomous and it is time to create public awareness on peaceful co-existence,” recalls D. Vasudharani, an academic with the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) located nearby.

First blood

The first fatal conflict in this region was witnessed eighteen years back when an aged woman was mauled to death by a panther in Mangalam, then a desolate village and now a burstling residential locality. Domesticated cattle cross the road for grazing at the foothills, and return home by evening. So much so, there is even a ‘buffalo crossing’ sign on this road warning motorists, but hardly noticed by the speeding vehicles. The mushrooming of colonies, convention centres, super markets and apartments abutting the hills expanded the human footprint in the area, was once feared by local denizens to venture into.