Translocation of Elephants

• The Kerala government's appeal of the order of the Kerala High Court is rejected by the Supreme Court.
• The Kerala government's appeal against the Kerala High Court's directive to move Arikomban (Wild Elephant), the "rice tusker" of Munnar, to the Parambikulam tiger reserve was recently dismissed by the Supreme Court.

About the translocation of elephant

• The act of transporting an elephant from its natural habitat to another location is referred to as translocation.
• This procedure is frequently used to address human-elephant conflict (HEC), in which elephants kill humans occasionally while damaging crops and destroying homes.
• The procedure of catching, restraining, and transporting elephants is frequently extremely stressful for them and can result in harm, misery, and even death.
• Elephant populations may also be significantly impacted, particularly if the translocated elephant is a matriarch or a breeding female.
• Additionally, research has shown that moving elephants may only shift the conflict's focal point rather than eliminate it entirely.
• Elephants frequently adjust to their new surroundings and continue to raid homes or fields, which causes more conflict.

Argument against

• A huge male elephant that had been relocated from the West Midnapore farmland in South Bengal to the Mahananda Sanctuary in the Darjeeling district was the subject of India's first radio-telemetry study of a translocated problem elephant in 2006.
• The elephant started destroying homes and raiding crops in communities and Army locations rapidly.
• In 2012, a team of biologists followed 12 male Asian elephants that had been relocated 16 times to various national parks in Sri Lanka as part of a study on translocated problem Asian elephants.
• The study concluded that translocation led to the spread and escalation of the conflict between humans and elephants as well as an increase in elephant mortality.
• In December 2018, Vinayaga, a bull known for raiding crops, was relocated from Coimbatore to the Mudumalai-Bandipur region.

Argument in favour

• The Kerala High Court emphasized that the presence of natural resources for food and water at the new location will discourage elephants from foraging near populated areas.
• The court also stressed that the elephant will be radio-collared and that forest / wildlife officials will be watching its activities, which will take away the element of surprise from any conflict situations.

Important relocations in the past

• Asiatic lions: Located from Gujarat's Gir National Park to Madhya Pradesh's Kuno Wildlife Sanctuary.
• Tigers: From Ranthambore National Park to Sariska Tiger Reserve and from Kanha Tiger Reserve to Satpura Tiger Reserve.
• From Kaziranga to other protected locations like Manas National Park and Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary, one-horned rhinos may be found.
• Blackbuck: From the Tal Chhapar Sanctuary in Rajasthan to the Velavadar National Park in Gujarat.
• Dolphins from the Ganges that travel to the Yamuna and the Chambal are known as Gangetic Dolphins.

Data and facts

• India is home to the greatest population of wild Asian elephants, estimated at 29,964 as of the 2017 Project Elephant census.

• Approximately 60% of the species' total population is there.

• The most elephants are found in Karnataka, then Assam, and Kerala.

• India's Natural Heritage Animal is the elephant.

• Elephants are regarded as a "Keystone Species" because of their vital contribution to the balance and wellbeing of forest ecosystems.

• They are renowned for having the biggest brains of any land animal, which contributes to their extraordinary intelligence.

• Elephants are particularly essential grazers and browsers in the ecosystem, eating large amounts of grass each day and dispersing seeds as they go.

• The frequently dense foliage that covers the Asian environment is also shaped by them.

Conservative Initiatives:

• India In order to protect elephants and their natural habitat in India, the Indian government launched Project Elephant in 1992.
• Additionally, 33 elephant reserves exist in India with the goal of conservation.
• The purpose of World Elephant Day, which is commemorated on August 12 every year, is to increase public awareness of the critical need to protect and conserve elephants.
• In order to raise awareness of the serious issues facing both Asian and African elephants, the day was launched in 2012.
• Monitoring of Illegal Killing of Elephants (MIKE) Programme:In order to enhance global decision-making on the conservation of elephants in Asia and Africa, an international collaboration measures the levels, trends, and causes of elephant mortality.

Way ahead

• Plans for proper monitoring and management, such as steps to reduce possible conflicts and post-relocation monitoring, should also be in place.

• While moving difficult elephants may be considered as a strategy to reduce conflicts between people and elephants, it should be done so cautiously and on the basis of thorough management plans, community involvement, and sound scientific research in order to reduce potential risks and guarantee the welfare of both elephants and local communities.