The available forest department conflict records since 1991 onwards were also incorporated during analysis. There are several projects and initiatives, on the mitigation of elephant human conflict, taking place around the country w ith little sharing of information. The study suggested that, humanhuman conflict in the form of politics is the main cause of conflict. The winning solution will receive a prize of up to 30,000 eur.
Catastrophic poaching in the 1970s and 80s saw their populations plummet to a mere fraction of pre 1970s numbers. Examining humanelephant conflict in southern africa. Humanelephant conflict hec is dramatically on the rise and has become one of the major issues in the fight to save asias endangered elephants. A 2017 survey puts northeastern indias wild elephant population at 10,9 nearly 25 percent of the total asian elephant elephas maximus stock of which 5,719 are found in assam, 1,754. Assams elephants at risk as mananimal conflict on the rise.
Nov 29, 2016 the human elephant conflict in assam has seen a steep rise in the recent times. Humanelephant conflicts in northeast india assam state. The biggest cause of humanelephant conflict hec, however, is that elephants simply cannot live within the small fencedoff areas that we call the protected area network. In 2002 this was renamed the human elephant conflict working group hecwg to more accurately reflect the ongoing nature of its work. The rhino foundation for nature in ne india, guwahati, india. Hec is on the rise as the space in the mara diminishes and the population continues to increase. Pdf habitat loss and humanelephant conflict in assam, india. Altogether 70 elephants have died this year and causes vary from train accidents to poisoning and electrocution, according to the forest department.
The humanelephant conflict in indias tea state assam bbc news. Sonitpur district, in the state of assam in northeast india, has been referred to as a ground zero for humanelephant conflict kvinta, 2004. According to department of wildlife and national parks, the highest numbers of human elephant conflict were recorded in johor 203 cases per year on average. The human elephant conflict is a term that defines a growing problem in asia. Human elephant conflict hec is a complex and pervasive problem that occurs throughout the range of the african elephant wherever elephants and people share the same habitat, often competing for the same resources. The humanelephant conflict in indias tea state assam.
Determining correlates of human elephant conflict reports within fringe villages of kaziranga national park, assam abstract human elephant conflict hec is a key example of the growing competition between people and wildlife for space and resources throughout africa and asia. Pdf among the land mammals, the schedule i wpa, 1972 asian elephant elephas mmimus is md only to african elephant loxodonta. People complain that elephants destroy their home gardens and their vegetable gardens. Pdf habitat loss and humanelephant conflict in assam. In fact in most countries across the asian elephants range, it has replaced poaching as the major human cause of elephant mortality. The assam forest department data shows that a total of 245 humans and 146 elephants were killed between 2001 and 2014 in mananimal conflicts on the border between assam and bhutan. Case study from tamil nadu 447 use of s earch light served as a mitigating factor to avoid elephant intrusion into the villages from the nearby forest areas. This conflict also results in the death of elephants. Humanelephant conflict, case study, mitigation, elephants. Jan 23, 2018 this conflict also results in the death of elephants. Latest and breaking news on elephant human conflict. Elephant human conflict is a result of habitat loss and fragmentation.
Jan 23, 2018 human elephant conflict in assam s tea gardens the human price of the conflict with elephants in indias tea garden state where a student was killed by an elephant on her way home from college. Explore elephant human conflict profile at times of india. This short video provides a snapshot of humanelephant conflict in assam. While visiting wtis rescue centre in kaziranga, assam, we witnessed an elephant crossing the adjacent tea plantation two mornings in a row. In the kenya portion of the ecosystem the maasai mara and surrounding areas, people and wildlife peacefully coexisted for years when space for both. Inaugurated on wednesday by the wildlife wardens of odisha, chhattisgarh, bihar, jharkhand and west bengal, it requires their departments to come together for the first time to resolve a problem which has assumed grave proportions in the last decade. In assams forests, humanelephant conflict has no winners between 2006 and 2016, wild elephants have killed 785 people in the state, while 225 pachyderms fell victim to poaching, speeding.
Pdf humanelephant conflict in india, driven by habitat loss and an expanding human population, is a complex challenge for biodiversity conservation find. In india alone, an average of 400 people and 100 elephants are killed every year as a result of human wildlife conflict. Elephanthuman conflict is a result of habitat loss and fragmentation. The available forest department conflict records since 1991. Identifying reasons of occurrence 92 movement of elephants is largely dependent on the availability of food, water and shelter. When elephants and humans interact, there is conflict from crop raiding, injuries and deaths to humans caused by elephants, and elephants being killed by humans for reasons other than ivory and habitat degradation. The favorite plantations which elephants always disturb are oil palm and banana.
It has assumed a severe character due to increasing human population. Humanelephant conflict in india, driven by habitat loss and an expanding human population, is a complex challenge for biodiversity conservation. Elephant herd moving into agricultural area, assam, india. Explore elephant human conflict profile at times of india for photos, videos and latest news of elephant human.
Pdf increasing trend of human elephant conflict in. Determining if, how and why this conflict has changed over time will be an important step towards managing landscapes where people and elephants elephas maximus coexist. The manelephant conflict has assumed alarming proportions in assam this year, raising the hackles of conservationists and compelling the state government to take initiatives to resolve the issue. However, in assam, unsustainable extraction of forest products and encroachment of forests. Predicting hotspots of humanelephant conflict to inform. The news portal caters news of national importance from the seven north eastern states and also helps in promoting the rich cultural heritage and cuisines of the region in the national and international arena. In g eneral, tr aditi onal m eth ods ar e easy to use, have low costs an d ar e m or e effective at low levels o f confli ct. Jan 24, 2018 growers of worldfamous assam tea are encroaching into forests, fuelling a conflict between elephants and humans, locals and authorities in the indian state have said. Humanelephant conflict mitigation mara elephant project. Data on humanelephant conflict in previous years from 2005 to 2010 were collected from the local divisional forest offices to make comparative study on humanelephant conflict in balasore and rairangpur divisions from 2005 to 2011. The escalation of humanelephant conflict in the past few decades and technological advances have resulted in d evelopm ent of ad diti onal m eth ods to ad dress th e pr oblem.
An assessment of human elephant conflict was carried out in the fringe villages around manas national park, assam during 2005 06. Aug 25, 2019 the human elephant conflict is a term that defines a growing problem in asia. Shrinking habitat and human elephant conflict in assam, india. An assessment of humanelephant conflict in manas national. The african elephant is perhaps the most iconic migratory land mammal on the continent. Humanelephant conflict in assams tea gardens the human price of the conflict with elephants in indias tea garden state where a student was killed by. An assessment of humanelephant conflict was carried out in the fringe villages around manas national park, assam during 2005 06. A comprehensive study of humanelephant conflict in the. Habitat loss and humanelephant conflict in assam, india. Humans and elephants in asia have a long history of living and working alongside each other. View humanelephant conflict research papers on academia. The scenario of manelephant conflict in hoollongapar gibbon.
Traditional landuse practices were suggested to mitigate conflict, who shared resources with elephants. According to indias environment ministry, 72 elephants were killed between 20 and 2014, with more than 100 killed in 2012. Due to large scale deforestation for the construction of villages, elephants have lost their natural habitats that. Keywords humanwildlife conflict, elephant, fragmentation, conservation, india introduction northeastern ne india is comprised of several states, including arunachal pradesh, assam, manipur, meghalaya, mi zoram, nagaland, tripura, sikkim, and the northern parts of west bengal. Humanelephant conflict hec occurs when people and wildlife compete for space and resources. An assessment of humanelephant conflict was carried out in the fringe villages around manas national park, assam during 200506. Habitat is shrinking daily and humans are encroaching on the territory of elephants. View human elephant conflict research papers on academia. Humanelephant conflict hec is a complex and pervasive problem that occurs throughout the range of the african elephant wherever elephants and people share the. At the same time, many poor farmers havent changed their daily lives for hundreds of years but their crops and villages are being threatened. Elephants of india find themselves in the hotbed of conflict. The man elephant conflict has assumed alarming proportions in assam this year, raising the hackles of conservationists and compelling the state government to take initiatives to resolve the issue. In india alone, an average of 400 people and 100 elephants are killed every year as a result of humanwildlife conflict. Hindu and buddhist religious traditions accord the elephant a sacred status and humans have been taming, training and riding elephants for millennia.
Officials blame smallscale plantations for most of the encroachment but local leaders told the bbc there was no uptodate land survey of bigger tea estates either. Determining correlates of humanelephant conflict reports. Wwf and wildlabs challenge you to develop a new, or improved, technology tool to reduce such interactions between humans and elephants. For the longterm, landscapescale strategies for habitat restoration and elephant conservation are essential, but these are conceptually and. Human elephant conflict in india, driven by habitat loss and an expanding human population, is a complex challenge for biodiversity conservation.
The state of assam in northeast india exemplifies how human elephant conflicts unfold amongst marginalised agricultural communities. Dec 05, 2014 this short video provides a snapshot of human elephant conflict in assam. There has been more livestock loss in areas where people took their. In 2002 this was renamed the humanelephant conflict working group hecwg to more accurately reflect the ongoing nature of its work. Communitybased humanelephant conflict management in assam. Growers of worldfamous assam tea are encroaching into forests, fuelling a conflict between elephants and humans, locals and authorities in the indian state have said.
Introduction humanwildlife conflict hwc arises when there is a compulsion to share common limited resources, such as land, game, livestock or fish schwerdtner and brend, 2007 and graham et al. Assam, therefore, is one of the most important strongholds for the survival of the asian elephant. All of them have been killed due to unnatural causes, with the primary reasons. Humanelephant conflict is a major conservation concern in elephant range countries.
Lets tune in to this beautiful story of bonding between man and animal. A case study in chunati wildlife sanctuary, bangladesh come to the villages as well as to the fields. Feb 05, 20 while visiting wtis rescue centre in kaziranga, assam, we witnessed an elephant crossing the adjacent tea plantation two mornings in a row. Increasing trend of human elephant conflict in golaghat district, assam, india. Manelephant conflict keeping assam forest dept on toes. Land conflicts may be the greatest longterm threat to elephant conservation because as people and elephants inhabit the same areas and share scarce resources, there will be more pressure to encroach on elephant habitat for human uses, and this will get worse as human populations continue to grow. May 15, 2018 a 2017 survey puts northeastern indias wild elephant population at 10,9 nearly 25 percent of the total asian elephant elephas maximus stock of which 5,719 are found in assam, 1,754. Estimates for the wild elephant population in assam vary. Humanelephant conflict hec is a complex interaction between humans and elephants, and. In order to meet this challenge, in 1997 the african elephant specialist group afesg officially inaugurated a fivemember humanelephant conflict task force. Wildlife managers in one state do not have access to research findings or results of mitigation measure testing being carried out in other states. The new regional plan to curb humanelephant conflict in eastern and central india is significant for several reasons.
In order to meet this challenge, in 1997 the african elephant specialist group afesg officially inaugurated a fivemember human elephant conflict task force. Pdf an assessment of humanelephant conflict in manas. For example, an elephant eats around 200 kg of food per day sukumar 2003 and a single elephant can destroy a hectare. A study of habitat utilization patterns of asian elephant elephas maximus and current status of human elephant conflict in manas national park within chirangripu elephant reserve, assam. The humanelephant conflict in assam has seen a steep rise in the recent times. Between 1997 and 2001 there were 208 human and 175 elephant deaths in assam as a result of the con. A comprehensive study of humanelephant conflict in the bordering areas of the three reserve forests of lakhimpur district, assam. We are an independent media run by a team of dedicated and experienced journalist of north east from national media background. Data on human elephant conflict in previous years from 2005 to 2010 were collected from the local divisional forest offices to make comparative study on human elephant conflict in balasore and rairangpur divisions from 2005 to 2011. Humanelephant conflict in assams tea gardens bbc news.
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