Meghalaya: Solar Lights Installed in West Garo Hills Villages to Reduce Human-Elephant Conflict

GUWAHATI: In the desolate hours of night, uncalled-for confrontations between wild elephants and humans that could be fatal frequently have place in HEC hotspots. Such confrontations aggravate the HEC situation in a certain location. Solar street lights are a practical solution to avoid such encounters between people and elephants and thereby lessen the tension.

The Meghalaya Forest Department has had a difficult year due to a spike in deaths brought on by frequent human-elephant conflicts (HEC). The state forest service is currently implementing a number of strategies to reduce such disputes and foster a community where people and pachyderms can live in harmony.

Seven villages in the West Garo Hills district of Meghalaya that were identified as HEC areas include Borogobal, Photamati, Kharsengdap, Bondukmali, Darengsigre, Bordubi, and Jamdangre. Aaranyak, one of India's leading research-driven biodiversity conservation organisations, has installed 10 solar street lights in these villages.

Aaranyak's team placed these solar street lights in these villages, which were home to indigenous cultures like the Garo, Rabha, and Bodo, after conducting a survey to determine the places based on elephant travel patterns.

In 2022, to prevent conflicts between people and elephants in the West Garo Hills, the Meghalaya govt and Arayanak, a group dedicated to biodiversity protection, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding. Aaranyak and the Meghalaya Forest Department will collaborate under the terms of this MoU to address the HEC issue in six previously chosen villages in the hill area.

The majority of the elephant-affected communities are situated in secluded areas of the state with low access to transportation, communication, and energy, as well as intermittent power supply.

Villagers frequently avoid leaving their homes after dusk for fear of running into wild elephants that may have wandered into their communities, especially women and children. Those nights are unsettling since there is no lighting.

As part of its intensive efforts to promote coexistence in Northeast India, Aaranyak has adopted a multifaceted strategy to ensure human elephant coexistence in Meghalaya. The company installed these solar lights on June 28 with assistance from the Darwin Initiative and in collaboration with the British Asian Trust and Meghalaya Forest Department.

Also Read: Assam: Elderly Woman Crushed to Death by Wild Elephants at Lakhipur

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