Indiluv: working towards coexistence of Human and Elephant in harmony
As most areas that form elephant habitat or range within India are close to or adjoining human settlement, there is often conflict between animals migrating or foraging for food, and local people.
Elephant-human conflict poses a grave threat to their continued existence. Studies on conflict between elephants and humans in Asia and in Africa have identified crop raiding as the main form of conflict.
Elephant-human conflict is a result of habitat loss and fragmentation. 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.
In the three years between 2015–2018, human-elephant conflict caused 1,713 human and 373 elephant deaths by unnatural causes, including electrocution and poaching. Experts say various factors, including habitat disturbance and urbanisation, could be the cause of the alarming rise in unnatural human and animal casualties.
Every day, one person is getting killed during crop raiding in India. Elephants also cause damage amounting from a few thousand dollars to millions of dollars.
Such encounters foster resentment against the elephants amongst the human population and this can result in elephants being viewed as a nuisance and killed. This was illustrated in the case of >60 elephants found dead in retaliation incidents in NE India and Sumatra in 2001, poisoned by plantation workers.
However, latest studies on Asian elephants living in contiguous compact habitats show that not all elephants in a population raid crops. However, in highly fragmented landscapes, the entire population may be involved in elephant-human conflict.
Human-elephant conflict can take their toll both on human lives and property as well as elephant populations. Ways of reducing or resolving such conflicts are vital for the viable conservation of Asian elephants. Indiluv is working towards coexistence of Human and Elephant in harmony. They use Bee as bio-deterrent against crop ridding elephants. Using bees Indiluv construct bee fences which mitigates the conflict and at the same time produce honey for a sustainable livelihood for the conflict affected people.
