45 people died in elephant attacks since April 1: Minister

Bhubaneswar: In five-and-a-half months, 45 people were killed in elephant attacks in the state. During the same period, nine elephants died, including one that was hit by a train, according to a written reply from forest minister Ganesh Ram Singhkhuntia on Tuesday. This was in response to a question from Kantamal MLA Kanhai Charan Dang, who wanted to know about the number of elephant deaths due to electrocution, train hits, poisoning, and poaching. He also wanted to know if electrocution was the primary cause of elephant deaths.The minister’s reply revealed that between April 1 and Sept 15, 45 people were killed in elephant attacks. Officials said in Odisha, human casualties due to wildlife attacks mostly arise from man-elephant conflict. Rarely do other wildlife animals kill humans. In the 2019–20, the annual human casualty in elephant attacks crossed the 100 mark, the highest ever since the man-elephant conflict started becoming alarming in 1982.The state wildlife wing has identified 10 problematic elephants in different landscapes that have been radio-collared to track their movements to check man-animal conflict, govt data revealed. The wildlife wing over the years identified these elephants, also called young bulls, to prevent possible conflicts and to take pre-emptive action in case it is found that the giant animal frequently strays into human habitation. Though a herd species, the aggressive bull elephants show solitary behaviour and they attack humans.On elephant mortality, the minister’s reply stated, “To reduce the incidence of electrocution, co-ordination is being established with the energy department and all sagging wires are being fixed. Also, the transformers are having protective boundaries around them. Awareness camps are being organised to sensitise villagers. Power supply is disconnected during elephant movement in villages.”In April, deputy chief minister KV Singh Deo’s written reply in the assembly revealed that 27 elephants died due to electrocution, most in western Odisha in the past five years. While districts like Sambalpur, Deogarh, Sonepur, Sundargarh, Balangir, and Bargarh together accounted for 17 electrocution deaths, the remaining 10 were reported from other parts of the state.