India, June 1 -- Farmers in Madhya Pradesh's Bundelkhand region say repeated crop raids by nilgai, wild boar and stray cattle are making agriculture unviable.

Many farmers now spend nights in makeshift huts, guarding their fields with torches to prevent animals from destroying crops.

Several report heavy losses in sesame, peas, chickpea and other crops, with some saying they now fear animals more than drought.

The crisis is pushing farmers to abandon cultivation, avoid sharecropping and migrate to cities in search of wage labour.

"Farming is no longer viable for me. I would rather move to Delhi and work as a labourer." So says Chandan Singh Rajput, a farmer from Patha village in Chhatarpur district of Madhya Pradesh, who has suffered ...