Keralam Forest Minister, former IFS officer spar over Chinnakkanal issue

A day after Keralam Forest Minister Shibu Baby John attributed the human-elephant conflict in Chinnakkanal to a “man-made” problem and cited retired Indian Forest Service officer Prakriti Srivastava’s recommendation as the basis for settling people in the 301 Colony, the issue triggered a rare on-stage exchange on Tuesday (October 6, 2026), when the former forest officer directly disputed the Minister’s interpretation of official records while both were sharing the dais at a programme in Thiruvananthapuram.

At the Wildlife Week conclave organised by the Coexistence Collective, Mr. John reiterated his contention that the Chinnakkanal settlement had its origins in a proposal made by Ms. Srivastava, the then Divisional Forest Officer (DFO), Munnar, and referred to a letter she had written to the Conservator of Forests, High Range Circle, in 2002