Man-elephant conflict: Causes and mitigation

Matiur Rahman

(The writer can be reached at matiurr09@gmail.com)

Nature itself is wild and the undisturbed natural habitats are the natural abodes of wild animals, and any kind of disturbance caused by various factors to such habitats creates panic and anxiety amongst the animals in the wild. The disturbances like the destruction of vegetation cover, encroachment of domain land, poaching of wild animals etc., result in ecological imbalance, and eventually, the wild organisms/animals experience scarcity of required food in their home grounds and in search of the same they come out of their habitats to the nearby human inhabitations. Thus conflicts are brought out between humans and animals. This happens especially in between humans and wild elephants all over the world and this issue has now become an intricate problem in Assam.

Causes of man-elephant conflict: As cited above, while the animals come out of their natural habitats in search of required food due to shortage of the same in their domain resulted by dwindling of habitats by human-inhabited around the natural domains in the following ways, then the man-animal conflicts emerge.

Destruction of vegetation cover: Illicit felling of trees by human beings and trespassing of both men and their pets (cattle) in the forests cause damage to the natural abodes of wild animals which results in the declination of available food of the animals. Wild animals get compelled to come out to human inhabitants in search of the same.

Encroachment of habitats:

Encroachment taking place in various forms is one of the major factors due to which the land areas of natural habitats are getting dwindled day by day resulting in a reduction of required food for wild animals for which the wild animals come out of the natural habitats to the nearby human habitats in search of food and ultimately the man-animal conflicts take place. Encroachments have taken place in the following forms in Assam-

1. In the form of dwelling house: Due to population explosion, people living nearby the natural habitats, for want of accommodation in their original places, occupy forest land and construct dwelling houses by destructing animal homes, particularly the elephant corridors. Sometimes, the vested interested political parties having political powers do the practices of settling people of other places, who, being displaced by natural calamities, form generally vote bank of those political parties, in forest lands.

2. In the form of cultivation of local crops: In search of fertile soil, the nearby people of the natural domain tend to clear forest land for cultivating local crops for their livelihood. The wild elephants are very much fond of ripped paddy and so they damage the crops raised by the nearby villagers as soon as the villagers try to prevent the wild elephants to enter into their paddy fields, the Man-Elephant Conflict takes place.

3. In the form of cultivation of tea: This is the major factor of encroachment of forest land. Most of the tea gardens are situated at sites adjacent to the forest land and in course of the passing of time the owners of the said tea gardens expand their garden land by encroaching upon the nearby forest lands. The private tea growers have become more threats to the natural habitats in Assam as most of the same has got forest land allotted in the name of revenue land by involving the revenue authorities. It is pertinent to mention here that the private tea growers indulge the illegal doers to fell trees illegally in the forest land nearby their tea gardens to merge the blank land so created with their gardens and thus the forest lands get dwindled.

4. In the form of diversion of forest land: Sometimes, for developmental activities like erection of power lines, widening of the road, mining operation etc., it becomes unavoidable to divert forest land which also contributes to the dwindling of natural habitats causing turbulence to the wild animals and thus leads to the occurrence of Man-Animal Conflict.

5. As of date, about 3,555 square km of recorded forest land, including the protected areas is under encroachment in Assam which is about 13.29% of the total forest areas of the State. India has an elephant population of 27,312 which is about 55% of the World Population and about 13% of which equaling 5,719, exists in Assam.

6. Conflict zone in Assam: A total of approximately 5,719 wild elephants are existing in Assam which is roaming over the areas of five elephant reserves as shown in the table below with the zone of Man-Elephant Conflict occurring over the whole year and gets its peak, generally within the period from November to February almost every year.

1. Effect of Man-Elephant Conflict: Over the years Assam is experiencing Man-Elephant Conflict being occurred due to the dwindling of forest cover because of the reasons as described in the above paras for which both humans and elephants have to lose their lives and property. The official data of the Government of Assam as quoted below depicts the gravity of the worst situation of man-elephant conflict in Assam. The data of the death of wild elephants include the 18 wild elephants who were killed due to electrocution of lightning on the 13/05/2021 night at Kondoli PRF under Nagaon Division.

Mitigation: Although various measures like digging of elephant proof trenches, erecting of solar power fencing around the natural habitats of an elephant or the human population habitats, are being launched to mitigate the menace of man-elephant conflict, no remarkable solution to the crisis has been achieved from these efforts as these are not a long-lasting project. For a long-term solution to the dilemma, the following items of measures will be the most effective, if taken stanchly, by the stakeholders viz. Government and NGOs are related to nature.

• Clearance of encroachment: The elephant corridors must be cleared from encroachment and left undisturbed.

• Survey & demarcation of boundary of the land of tea gardens: The boundaries of tea gardens which are contiguous to any forest land should be surveyed and demarcated at par their allocation by the land advisory board concerned with due consultation of the government notification of forest land and then the encroached areas should be made free from the occupation of the owner of the tea gardens.

Payment of ex-gratia & compensation: The admissible ex gratia and compensation, which the affected families deserve to get, must be paid immediately after the occurrence of an incident of depredation caused by wild elephants.

Adoption of co-existence: The people of the localities who are prone to elephant depredation should be made educated to learn to co-exist with the wild elephant by avoiding the creation of panic while the elephants come out of their natural habitats. If the people of the localities are concerned to allow the wild elephants to move freely and to allow their cattle to mix with wild elephants, it will cause less damage to the lives and property of both parties.

The regime of nature: Nature be allowed to administer over the natural property comprising vegetation and living organisms. Panic should not be created upon receipt of the information of the death of an elephant or a human happened to be occurred due to unforeseen man-elephant conflict. This policy will certainly enable our nature to maintain ecological balance in its natural kingdom.

Our Nature should be allowed to be remained natural and undisturbed. Co-existence with the wild elephants is the best solution to the Man-Elephant conflict provided the government shall have to make payment of ex gratia and compensation to the victimized families immediately after the occurrence of the depredation being caused by the wild elephants. Redundant hue and cry which creates panic amongst people and wild elephants should be avoided and in this connection, the concerned people should be made educated by organizing awareness programme wherein the local NGOs and social workers may be involved. Let wild elephants, when coming out of the natural habitats to the human habitats, be treated as the cattle of the localities concerned. As far as practicable, in the name of development, the diversion of forest land should be avoided.