After almost 42 years, Karnataka Forest Department is planning to capture 25 wild elephants in the severe conflict zone by khedda operations (stockade traps). It was in 1971 when the Forest Department captured around 47 pachyderms under khedda operations last time.

According to Forest Department, they have identified Alur Taluk of Hassan district as the most severe man-animal conflict zone and planning to capture around 25 wild jumbos to minimise the conflict which has reached a peak.

The Karnataka Elephant Task Force in its report to the High Court in September 2012 identified two regions —Alur and Tumkur district’s Savandurga — as “elephant removal zones” for the “unacceptable levels” of conflict.

According to GS Prabhu, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife), the department has identified two places as severe conflict zones to capture wild elephants.

According to task force report, the conflict in Alur was intense and the elephant population was ecologically unviable. The report said, “Here, a herd of 25-30 elephants inhabit a tiny 5-sq km forest patch circumscribed by agricultural fields that they routinely raid.”

According to Forest Department statistics, between 1986 and 2011, elephants killed 46 people and injured over 240, creating a “fear psychosis among people that hampers their ability to work and lead normal lives.”

According to Forest chief, the programme will commence in January 2014 and department would be using a combination of methods that incorporate elements from traditional khedda and also modern-day chemical tranquilising.

Karnataka has over 6,000 elephants in its forest and increasing conflict has become a major worry. The human occupation and erosion of elephant corridors have contributed to a major human-elephant conflict which has led this ultimate measure to capture the wild jumbos.

Project Elephant was launched in 1992 by the Government of India Ministry of Environment and Forests to provide financial and technical support of wildlife management efforts by States for their free ranging populations of wild Asian elephants. The project aims to ensure long term survival of viable conservation of elephant population in their natural habitats by protecting the elephants, their habitats and migration corridors. Other goals of Project Elephant are supporting research of the ecology and management of elephants, creating conservation awareness among local people, providing improved veterinary care for captive elephants.