Hazaribag: The forest department has started work on setting up an advanced elephant transit and treatment centre in the district to curb the rising human-elephant conflicts in the region. The centre is coming up in Jharpo forest under Tatijharia block, a known elephant corridor.For years, residents of Tatijharia and adjoining areas have been incurring crop losses, destruction of properties and loss of lives due to the marauding elephant herds. Six people have been killed by elephants in the area since January this year.The new centre will curb such incidents by ensuring quicker rescue and treatment of elephants that stray into human settlements, officials said.The centre will have trenches to prevent elephants from straying outside the premises. Two buildings will house forest personnel and wildlife experts. A check dam is also being planned to ensure availability of water for the animals.Forester Vidya Bhushan said, “The centre would serve multiple purposes, including safe rescue, temporary shelter and treatment of injured elephants, while also helping control aggressive animals. The entire project is designed to manage both aggressive and injured elephants.” The official added that the work started couple of days ago and is expected to get completed in the next six months.A key feature of the facility will be the deployment of trained kumki elephants. These elephants are widely used by forest departments for rescue operations and handling difficult situations involving wild elephants. Officials said kumkis will play a crucial role in guiding trapped elephants out of wells or marshy areas and assisting in controlling aggressive animals.Wildlife experts said kumki elephants are also used to calm aggressive male elephants and paving way for rescue teams to safely control and relocate it.Tatijharia and surrounding areas have long remained vulnerable to elephant movement, with multiple human deaths and repeated crop losses reported over the years. The elephants enter Tatijharia frequently round the year via Barkatha which shares border with Giridih and Dhanbad district.