Guwahati: Farmers at Rani Chapori char in Assam’s Kamrup (M) district have raised alarms over a herd of domestic buffaloes that have been causing damage and posing safety risks for the past two years.
According to locals, the problem began in 2024 when eight buffaloes were first spotted on the char. The herd has now grown to 22, including calves. “The animals appear at night, run amok, and vanish by dawn. Authorities should tranquilize them and monitor the char for several days to prevent accidents,” said Akshay Kalita, a farmer of the area.
Kalita added that while some farmers have built fencing to protect crops, not all can afford such measures. “The safety of lives and farmland is paramount. The Forest Department must implement a concrete plan before any mishap occurs,” he said.
The buffaloes have frequently damaged vegetables including brinjal, cabbage, pumpkin, bottle gourd, and lady’s finger. Subhash Kalita, another farmer, said the crisis is intensifying and demanded immediate intervention. His own 20-bigha plot suffered heavy losses, prompting him to dig a four- to five-foot-deep trench, which successfully deterred the herd. Other farmers with smaller plots have erected barbed-wire fences.
“The Forest Department tried driving the herd away with our help, but the animals retreat to dense jungle areas once they see people,” Subhash Kalita added. Farmers on the char cultivate vegetables, pulses, oilseeds, and paddy.
Forest Department officials said teams have visited the char several times to drive away the herd. “These buffaloes are domestic animals washed away by floods that later took shelter on the char,” a source said, adding that operations were conducted in January 2025 and earlier in October 2024. Teams included the Rani Forest Range, Guwahati Protection Squad at Basistha, Azara police, and local villagers.
Forest Range Officer Mrinal Medhi said drones helped locate the animals, but the area falls under a no-flying zone, and spotting the buffaloes during daytime remains difficult as they retreat into dense jungle.
Owners of the buffaloes reportedly submitted applications to the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO), East Kamrup Forest Division, claiming their animals were washed away during floods. DFO Ashok Dev Choudhury said he received three applications on November 11, 2025, and forwarded them to the Co-District Commissioner, Jalukbari, on December 8.
Co-District Commissioner Jiban Krishna Goswami said capturing the animals would be easier during the kharali season and requested affected farmers to submit written statements detailing crop losses.
Experts from wildlife organisation Aranyak warned that feral domestic buffaloes retain human-imprinted behaviour, posing potential attack risks. They also highlighted public health concerns, including transmission of foot-and-mouth disease and other infections from wildlife to humans.