To mitigate human-wildlife conflict, the Forest Department has devised a plan to ensure food and water for wild animals in the forest during the summer, preventing them from entering human settlements. The project, named Mission Food, Fodder, and Water (Mission FFW), is being implemented in three phases.

Information about forest areas, ponds, streams, meadows, open forest areas, and truck routes will be collected in the first phase. In the second phase, brushwood check dams will be constructed in streams that dry up in the summer. Mud and sand in ponds and dams will be removed and cleaned. Water conservation will be enhanced by digging ponds or constructing concrete tanks in drought-prone areas.

The third phase aims to create meadows and open spaces within the forest by uprooting invasive trees such as acacia and eucalyptus that deplete soil moisture. The Forest Department is taking steps to gradually remove exotic tree plantations and replace them with indigenous tree species, including fruit-bearing trees.

Mission FFW is a special campaign designed to ensure water and food availability within the forest from January to May when human-wildlife conflict is most prevalent. It focuses on areas with higher levels of wildlife conflict.

In Wayanad, 63 hotspots have been identified across six forest ranges. Drone inspections will be conducted in these hotspots as part of the project. A team of 80 personnel has been deployed to carry out vista clearance.

Vista clearance involves clearing undergrowth and invasive plants along a width of 5 to 30 meters on both sides of roads, coupe roads, truck paths, and other pathways inside the forest. This will help reduce road accidents and human-wildlife conflicts. Additionally, the creation of open spaces will increase the availability of food for wildlife.