Planning for conservation of elephant corridors: case of Ankua Ambia, West Singhbhum, Jharkhand

Abstract

Unregulated development and rapid growth in rural and urban India have fragmented the natural forest cover. Human-Elephant Conflicts have been on the rise due to the discontinuity of the movement corridor. The ever-increasing demand for land Resources to instill in the required sectors the demand for raw materials to be extracted has been a major sector that puts pressure on the services provided. Conflicts compromise the psychological build-up of the population, making them both physically, mentally and financially vulnerable and weak. HEC causes crop and property loss and occasionally results in the death of both humans and elephants in Jharkhand. Identification of the factors associated with elephant invasion can help mitigate conflict by allowing residents and representatives to address those factors. The prospect of the thesis study is towards, undertaking the planning aspect in consideration for the future - present and giving due heed over the future developments in a resource rich region. To achieve this it requires the study to have an intent to orient and secure the future through my proposals for Ecological Restorations and Conservation as per the UN Decade on Ecosystem restoration 2021-2030 for the Elephant Corridors from exploitation and degradation through the extensive resource extraction and anthropogenic activities which would in turn strengthen the commitment as per the SDG-2030 agenda.(Government of India & Niti Aayog, 2019; Menon et al., 2017; MOEFCC, 2019) According to Project Elephant census 2017, 3% of India’s land total surface is elephant’s country and only 10% of this is affected by conflict. The Ankua – Ambia Elephant corridor in Saranda Elephant Reserve, Jharkhand has 1% population of elephant but is one of the most active conflict corridors. However, wild elephants probably kill far more people than tigers, leopards or lions, says the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change.(Menon et al., 2017; MOEFCC, 2019) According to MoEFCC data, in the three years from 2015-2018, human-elephant conflict caused 1,713 human and 373 elephant deaths by unnatural causes, including electrocution and poaching.(IUCN, 2018) Long-term resolution of human-elephant conflict and promotion of peaceful coexistence requires a simultaneous action on focusing the management efforts on site-specific considerations as well as the formulation and application of strategic plans at the landscape level that directly address underlying anthropogenic drivers and their spatio-temporal variation. Current conflict management approaches focus on prevention through exclusion and on-site deterrents, and mitigation via elephant translocation or selective culling and monetary compensation for losses. (Wildlife Trust of India, 2016) However, these management approaches merely address the symptoms, rather than the underlying drivers of human-elephant conflict associated with cultural values, resource use decision making, and the increasing fragmentation and isolation of elephant populations. Knowledge of the spatial-temporal patterns of HEC help local government, wildlife officials, and civil organizations plan mitigation measures accordingly. The study would suggest a coupled natural and human systems approach to offer a potential evidence study for understanding the human and elephant interactions, behavioral aspects and resource use at the landscape level, highlighting the need for cooperation to restore the degraded Elephant Corridor.