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1,160 elephants killed 10 Years
The information was revealed in the RTI reply.
According to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) in 10 years up to 31st December 2020, 1,160 elephants were killed in India( except for the natural causes).
The deaths were due to the following reasons:
- Electrocution – 741
- Train hits leading to death – 186
- Poaching – 169
- Poisoning - 64
In Karnataka and Odisha, 133 elephants each were due to electrocution. In Assam, 129 deaths were reported due to electrocution
Assam had 62 and West Bengal had 57 deaths of elephants due to train hits.
Odisha had the highest elephant deaths of 49 due to poaching, whereas, Kerala was second with 23 deaths due to poaching.
The deaths due to poisoning were highest in Assam, with a total of 32, while Odisha was second with 15 poisoning deaths of elephants.
According to Ministry as per an estimate in 2017, India had a total of 29,964 wild elephants in India.
The states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra accounted for the highest population — 14,612 elephants.
In India, Elephants are found in four fragmented populations, in the south, north, central and northeast India.
Elephants are ‘megaherbivores that require vast tracts of forests, rich in food and water to survive.
Elephants have a diverse range of habitats and large home ranges, this aids in the protection of biodiversity within their range.
Conservation of elephants could help in maintaining the biological diversity and ecological integrity of large forest tracts.
Protection status:
IUCN: Endangered
According to IUCN “There are now only about 48,000-50,000 Asian Elephants found in 13 range states. More than 60% of the wild population exists in India alone. Only four other countries - Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar and Sri Lanka - have more than 2,000 wild elephants”.
Wildlife Protection Act, 1972
Section 9 of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 talks about the prohibition of hunting of the animals listed under Schedule I, II, III, IV. The elephant is a protected species under Schedule I.
Hunting of animals listed under these Schedules will invite heavy punishment and incarceration of up to 7 years.
The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)
Asian elephants have been listed in CITES Appendix I.
Appendix I lists species that are the most endangered among CITES-listed animals and plants.
They are threatened with extinction and CITES prohibits international trade in specimens of these species except when the purpose of the import is not commercial, for instance for scientific research.
Project Elephant
Centrally Sponsored Scheme launched in 1992 by the Government of India Ministry of Environment and Forests.
Provides financial and technical support to wildlife management efforts by states for their free-ranging populations of wild Asian Elephants.
Aim:
Ensure the long-term survival of the population of elephants in their natural habitats by protecting them, their habitats and migration corridors.Supporting the research of the ecology and management of elephants, creating awareness of conservation among local people, providing improved veterinary care for captive elephants.
Objectives:
- To protect elephants, their habitat, and corridors.
- To address issues of man-animal conflict.
- The welfare of captive elephants
- To promote not to harm elephants for their teeth.
World Elephant Day
12th August – It is celebrated globally to spread awareness for the conservation and protection of elephants.
Elephant Corridors
Elephant corridors are narrow strips of land that connect two large habitats.
In a 2017 study, Delhi-based non-profit, Wildlife Trust of India (WTI), in collaboration with “Project Elephant” and UK-based non-profit “Elephant Family”, has identified 101 elephant corridors in India.
Out of these 101 corridors, 28 have been identified in South India, 25 in Central India, 23 in North-Eastern India, 14 in northern West Bengal and 11 in North-Western India.
While 70 per cent of the 101 corridors are regularly used, 25 per cent are used occasionally and 6 per cent rarely.
In general, 93 per cent of the elephant corridors in South India, 86 per cent in northern West Bengal and 66 per cent in north-eastern India are regularly used.
In India, however, elephant reserves and corridors have no legal sanctity under the Wildlife Protection Act (WLPA), 1972. The act mentions only national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, conservation and community reserves (collectively called Protected Areas).
Habitat loss and conflict with humans:
Human Interventions
Inroads in Elephant habitats due to the increasing human population and economic development have led to the loss and reduction of elephant habitat.
Anthropogenic factors
Extreme degradation due to large parts of elephant habitat.
Outcome- Human - elephant conflicts are increasing leading to death and injury of human beings and retaliatory killings of elephants.
At present, this is amongst the biggest threats to the survival of Asian elephants in the wild.
Poaching:
Even where suitable habitat exists, poaching remains a threat to elephants. Since only males have tusks, poaching has resulted in a highly skewed male-female sex ratio in many areas.
Poaching for meat and other products like tail hair also pose threats to populations, especially in northeast India.
Implement the suggestion of the Elephant Task Force (ETF) report.
The Union government had constituted an Elephant Task Force (ETF) in 2010 under the leadership of historian Mahesh Rangarajan to review the existing policy of elephant conservation in India and formulate future interventions.
The task force came out with a comprehensive report, called “Gajah: Securing the Future for Elephants in India”.
Important Suggestions:
Establishment of a multi-level governance model
The task force advocated for a statutory body in line with the National Tiger Conservation Authority, named the National Elephant Conservation Authority (NECA).
Addressing human-elephant conflict
To create a more coordinated and science-based mitigation strategy for human-elephant conflict, the ETF proposed many steps.
A permanent Conflict Management Task Force was suggested for the review of existing conflict mitigation strategies and recommend site-specific strategies at the reserve level.
It recommended all the elephant corridors be notified by respective state governments.
The ETF recommended entire elephant ranges be designated eco-sensitive zones under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
It advised the creation of different ‘no-go’ and ‘slow-go zones in the elephant reserves for the regulation of developmental activities.
Local community participation in elephant conservation
The ETF acknowledged the lack of community participation in the programmes were the primary reason for a failure in conflict mitigation strategies.
Regarding local community involvement, the ETF suggested co-operative models of conservation be ensured in human-dominated areas within elephant landscapes.
Elephant corridors must be protected by declaring community reserves or conservation reserves under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 or community forest under the Forest Rights Act, 2006.
Project Elephant should provide incentives to people for maintaining their land as corridors and they should be included in reserve management committees.
Youths from Scheduled Tribes (ST) and other traditional forest dweller (OTFD) communities should be employed as elephant trackers for keeping up-to-date information about elephant herds. Local villagers / ST / OTFDs can be incentivised to provide information on elephant poaching.
Other significant suggestions
The ETF also suggested pathways to:
- Set up reserve-level research stations to improve elephant-related research
- Fill forest staff vacancies
- Insure and incentivise forest staff
- Set up a task force for the welfare of captive elephants
- Project India as a global leader in Asian elephant conservation