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Human-elephant conflict: Ministry gets 2 months to devise action plan 

28 Feb 2021

  • Experts panel to review 2006 National Policy 
The Ministry of Wildlife and Forest Conservation has been given 2 months by the Committee on Public Accounts (COPA) to prepare a formal plan to expedite the implementation of the recommendations proposed concerning the resolution of the human-elephant conflict by the special presidential committee, The Sunday Morning learnt.  The special committee appointed by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to find solutions for the existing human-elephant conflict issue, chaired by Dr. Prithiviraj Fernando, presented the report containing the recommendations, recently. Following the submission, the COPA also requested the panel of experts to review the 2006 National Policy on the Resolution of the Elephant-Human Conflict when preparing the formal plan.  “During the previous COPA meeting held on 9 December 2020, it was revealed that Sri Lanka was noted to be the country that recorded the highest number of elephant deaths as a result of the ongoing human-elephant conflict. Even when you take the number of human deaths due to the human-elephant conflict, Sri Lanka is listed as having the second highest human death rate. Therefore, we recommended that immediate action be followed,” COPA Chairman Prof. Tissa Vitharana explained to The Sunday Morning.  Prof. Vitharana further noted that the task of finding a solution for the human-elephant conflict cannot be entirely pinned on the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC), as had been mentioned in the recommendations made by the special committee.  “We have recommended that the construction and maintenance of electric fences should be collective efforts which involve the respective divisional secretariats, the Agrarian Services Department, and the Mahaweli Authority as well,” Prof. Vitharana elaborated.  According to the lead specialist in the special committee, Dr. Fernando, a village community-based electric fence and an alternative electrical fencing system are to be employed during the periods of cultivation. “Based on field research, we have identified that traditional methods of chasing elephants, which are currently in operation, cannot be continued, as they have failed the communities time and again. There are areas with elephant fences which are successfully being implemented with the contribution of the community and the respective local stakeholders, and the methods that have proved to be effective can therefore be adopted in other areas as well,” Dr. Fernando had explained in the report.  For the moment, the DWC said that it has implemented programmes to construct elephant fences, dig trenches to make the cultivation lands elephant proof, and build beehives to deter elephants from raiding crops.  The COPA further discussed how villagers in certain areas refuse to build the fence, as it disrupts the boundary of their land, while in some areas there have been reports of the theft of the batteries that had been used for the electric fence.  However, the special committee emphasised that the villagers too should be educated to get involved in making an active contribution to resolving the issue, including the fencing process.  The special committee also called for the immediate revival of community organisations such as “Gajamithuro”, which are currently inactive.  The committee further pointed out that the contribution of all relevant Divisional Secretariats, Grama Niladharis, and other stakeholders should be sought for this purpose, and highlighted the importance of working more closely with the village community.  Further, the committee pointed out that although there are proposals in policy documents to resolve the human-elephant conflict, they are not being implemented in practice at the grassroots level. In this regard, the committee also drew attention to the recommendations not being carried out pertaining to the said issue.  The improper construction of elephant reserves and elephant corridors, content pertaining to the issue not being included in the school curriculum by the Ministry of Education, and the construction of electric fences without proper standards were pointed out by the committee alongside the need to execute such matters as soon as possible.


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