Elephant management: a jumbo challenge

The population of elephants in the country has declined by nearly 10% in the last five years, as per figures released by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFCC) on World Elephant Day recently. In 2012, when World Elephant Day was launched, the population of elephants was estimated to be around 30,000. In 2017, it is said to be just over 27,000. Although the government claims that the reduction is due to a more scientific count this time, concerns regarding elephant habitats and their population remain.

Conversely, human deaths due to encounters with wild elephants have risen across the country. In the last four years, one human life was lost every day due to human-elephant conflict. A total of 1,465 people have been killed in that time. Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Orissa and West Bengal experience varying levels of human-elephant conflict (HEC), in which annually 400 people, mostly agriculturists or farm workers, lose their lives to this phenomenon.

Today, the three coffee plantation districts of Chikkamagaluru, Hassan and Kodagu are adversely affected by the magnitude of HEC which has resulted in several human deaths over the last few years. The economic impact of HEC on the coffee plantation has significant societal ramifications given the number of people involved in the coffee industry.

An estimated 27,000 wild elephants are distributed over an area of 65,000 sq km, which covers less than 3% of the country’s geographical area. These mega mammals are dispersed across four large regions, each with several sub-populations from small herds in isolated forest patches to several thousand elephants in large inter-connected landscapes. They are spread across 32 elephant reserves which comprise Protected Areas (PAs) and forests. Unfortunately, all such PAs and forests in our country are highly fragmented because of poor forest management.

Poor forest management is evident from the sight of monoculture tree plantations with only single species of trees like teak, silver oaks or rosewood in the midst of national parks. Such trees are devoid of fodder value and their nutrient deficient leaf-litter prevents the proliferation of undergrowth which drives elephants elsewhere in search of food and also makes these animals vulnerable to poachers.

Additionally, the unchecked growth of invasive weeds like Lantana camara impedes the free movement of elephants through the forests. These weeds also curb the growth of grass which results in starvation deaths of the Asian elephants, Elephas maximus.

More importantly, the presence of railway tracks or highways/local roads in the middle of some PAs results in the collision of elephants with rail engines or heavy vehicular traffic, particularly at night. The PAs also have multiple beat roads for forest staff to patrol, which are unscientifically designed and located close to each other. When elephants take alternative routes to avoid contact with humans, they inadvertently clash with humans in other areas enhancing HEC risk.

Another knotty aspect is the inadequate survey and demarcation of forest boundaries, which abut cultivated areas. This results in human intrusion into forest zones, disturbing animals and escalating scope for HEC. In northern Karnataka, Orissa and Jharkhand, elephants have lost large chunks of habitat to mining and encroachments. It is this shrinking of habitat and annoyance in the available area that compels the animals to enter into human habitations in search of food and water.

Main stakeholders

The three HEC stakeholders include man, elephant and the government. Therefore, scientists, foresters, scholars, cultivators, panchayat representatives, elephant lovers, and veterinarians need to deliberate over the problem. The MoEFCC and the seven forest departments where elephants are concentrated should demonstrate the seriousness of intent backed by political will to tackle HEC.

The forest departments can consider planting nutrient-rich jackfruit, coconut, corn, sugarcane etc inside the PAs to prevent elephants from crop-raiding elsewhere. To keep them confined inside forests, solar fences and trenches also need to be well maintained. Since it is proven that elephants become panicky when they hear the buzz of bees, farmers involved in honey bee rearing (apiculture) on the periphery of forests can be encouraged to adopt beehive fences through government subsidies.

Importantly, ‘raid-friendly’ farming could be substituted with flowering plants in agricultural areas which adjoin the PAs. It would beautify the landscape and provide nectar for bees while also successfully keeping elephants away. Such practices should involve a politically-backed elephant management policy through consolidation of the animal’s habitats and the need to maintain the integrity of elephant corridors with necessary budgetary support.

The elephant’s visibility and presence across diverse eco-systems are higher than the tiger’s. As India pushes forward with development, elephant habitats will come under greater threat, jeopardising their existence. If corrective measures are not immediately undertaken on a war-footing, the big-eared mammal faces the imminent threat of becoming an endangered species.

(The writer is Professor, Department of Zoology, Christ University, Bengaluru)