Compiled by FAZLEENA AZIZ, TAN SIN CHOW AND R. ARAVINTHAN
A HERD of wild elephants has wreaked havoc on a coconut plantation in Johor, destroying 6,000 trees and causing estimated losses of RM1.8mil over the past nine months, Kosmo! reported.
The intrusions, which began in October last year, have devastated the Sedili Kechil Food Production Zone in Kota Tinggi involving crops cultivated by 32 entrepreneurs and six farming organisations.
Pengerang Area Farmers’ Organisation managing director Mohamad Azhar Din said 6,171 coconut trees were damaged.
“These elephants are believed to roam in small groups of three to five and typically strike during the night until dawn,” he said, adding that the most recent incidents on June 16 and 17 destroyed 380 trees and caused RM90,000 in losses.
“Those trees were planted in late 2023 and expected to begin bearing fruit by the end of next year.”
He said numerous mitigation efforts had been implemented, including building fences and drainage systems and conducting patrols, as recommended by the Wildlife and National Parks Department.
He warned that continued attacks by the elephants could undermine the state government’s agrofood development.
Previously, the plantation had only faced threats from monkeys, wild boars and rats.
> Popular entertainer Nabil Ahmad has touched hearts online with his plan to transform his family home in Mambau, Negri Sembilan, into a madrasah.
The multi-talented 42-year-old, whose full name is Ahmad Nabil Ahmad, shared on social media that the dream is close to becoming a reality.
“My mother had expressed her desire for our family home to become a madrasah for religious learning and events.
“She also hoped it could provide a source of income for our family as the land is ours,” he told Berita Harian.
He said renovations are slated to start early next year, with the existing home to be demolished in order to make way for a small mosque.
“I also plan to build a tahfiz and provide accommodation for students and the ustaz. For starters, we will accept only male students and offer free Quran classes,” he said.
Nabil added that he would consult the Negri Sembilan Islamic Religious Council on the process of land endowment and official establishment of the madrasah.
(The above articles are compiled from the vernacular newspapers (Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil dailies). As such, stories are grouped according to the respective language/medium. Where a paragraph begins with a >, it denotes a separate news item.)
