Initiatives Discussed to Mitigate Human-Elephant Conflict

COLOMBO (News 1st) - The Ministry of Environment, Wildlife, Forest Resources, Water Supply, Plantation, and Community Infrastructure says that it is taking steps to address the ongoing human-elephant conflict by providing unused cabs of ministries to the wildlife offices . 

The Ministry says that this initiative was discussed at a recent meeting held between Minister Vijitha Herath and officials.

One key issue highlighted during the discussions was the lack of wired telephone connections in some regional offices of the Department of Wildlife Conservation. 

To improve communication between villages and these offices, the ministry has decided to focus on collaborating with a private company.

Additional measures paid attention to include preventing wild elephants from entering villages, efficiently distributing essential equipment to vulnerable areas, and ensuring the protection of electric fences with the assistance of full-time village security officers and wildlife officials.

Minister Vijitha Herath had emphasized the importance of developing a long-term solution alongside a comprehensive program to implement these decisions promptly, instead of short-term solutions.

Meanwhile, the Department of Wildlife reported a significant decrease in elephant deaths, projecting a reduction of 50 percent compared to last year. 

Additionally, human fatalities caused by wild elephant attacks have decreased by about 20 percent. 

However, the department noted that approximately 90 wild elephants lost their lives last year due to human activities, particularly the installation of power lines.