Shibu Baby John and Prakriti Srivastava clash over Chinnakkanal conflict
At a Wildlife Week event in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala's Forest Minister Shibu Baby John and former Indian Forest Service officer Prakriti Srivastava got into a public disagreement about who is to blame for the ongoing human-elephant conflict in Chinnakkanal.
John pointed to a 2002 letter from Srivastava, saying it supported settling tribal families in the area, a move he claims made things worse.
Srivastava pushed back, explaining her letter was just an internal communication about encroachments and tribal rehabilitation, not a green light for settlements.
Cabinet decision settled Chinnakkanal families
The real turning point came with a 2003 Cabinet decision to settle families in Chinnakkanal, even though Srivastava had warned it could spark more human-elephant clashes.
Later plans under the Rebuild Kerala initiative to protect the area and relocate residents never took off.