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ALLIANCE SCHOOL OF LAW

ENVIRONMENTAL LAW

PROJECT ELEPHANT

Submitted by : Submitted to:

Shubham Sakhuja prof:Abhishek
BBA LLB (B) Sharma
15040142135
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Contents

1) Acknowledgement
2) Introduction
3) Governmental role for the protection of elephants
4) Indian Elephant population figures
5) Domesticated Elephants in India
6) Summary
7) Projet Elephant
8) Conclusion
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Introduction:

Elephant ( Elephas maximus ) is the largest terrestrial mammal of India . Elephant being wide

ranging animal requires large areas . As per our mythology , elephant took birth from celestial

waters and thus are closely associated with rains / water because of the belief. The requirement

of food and water for elephants are very high and therefore their population can be supported

only by forests that are under optimal conditions. The status of elephant can be the best indicator

of the status of the forests. Asian elephants were believed to be widely distributed – from Tigris

– Euphrates in West Asia eastward through Persia into the Indian sub-continent, South and

Southeast Asia including Sri Lanka, Java, Sumatra, Borneo and up to North China. However

currently they are confined to Indian Subcontinent, South East Asia and some Asian Islands - Sri

Lanka, Indonesia and Malaysia. About 60% of the Asian elephant population is in India. Old

literatures indicate that even during the Moghul period, elephants were found all over India

including many part of Central India like Marwar, Chanderi, Satwas, Bijagarh and Panna.

However current distribution of wild elephant in India is confined to South India ; North East

including North West Bengal; Central Indian states of Orissa , South WB and Jharkhand; and

North West India in Uttarakahnd and UP.

Governmental role for the protection of elephants:

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Project Elephant (PE) was launched by the Government of India in the year 1992 as a Centrally
Sponsored Scheme with following objectives :
1. To protect elephants, their habitat & corridors
2. To address issues of man-animal conflict
3. Welfare of captive elephants

Financial and Technical support are being provided to major elephant bearing States in the
country. The Project is being mainly implemented in 16 States / UTs , viz. Andhra Pradesh,
Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra,
Meghalaya, Nagaland, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal.
Main activities under the Project are as follows:
1. Ecological restoration of existing natural habitats and migratory routes of elephants;
2. Development of scientific and planned management for conservation of elephant habitats
and viable population of Wild Asiatic elephants in India;
3. Promotion of measures for mitigation of man elephant conflict in crucial habitats and
moderating pressures of human and domestic stock activities in crucial elephant habitats;
4. Strengthening of measures for protection of Wild elephants form poachers and unnatural
causes of death;
5. Research on Elephant management related issues;
6. Public education and awareness programmes;
7. Eco-development
8. Veterinary care
9. Elephant Rehabilitation/Rescue Centers

Estimation of wild elephant population in the year 2007 and 2012.

The all India enumeration of wild population of elephants in the country is carried out at every
five year interval. The comparative figures as below for the states shows that the estimated
population of wild elephants in the country has increased to 29391-30711 as compared to 27657-
27682 in 2007.
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Elephant Reserves:

Till now 28 Elephant Reserves (ERs) extending over about 61830.08 sq km have been formally
notified by various State Governments. Consent for establishment 2 more ERs – Khasi Elephant
Reserve in Meghalaya and Dandeli Elephant Reserve in Karnataka has been accorded by
MoEF&CC. Inclusion of Bhadra Wildlife Sanctuary in Mysore Elephant Reserve has also been
approved by the Ministry. The concerned State Governments are yet to notify these ERs.

Monitoring of Illegal Killing of Elephants ( MIKE ) Programme

Mandated by COP resolution of CITES , MIKE program started in South Asia in the year 2003
with following purpose –
To provide information needed for elephant range States to make appropriate management and
enforcement decisions, and to build institutional capacity within the range States for the long-
term management of their elephant populations.
The main objectives of the MIKE are:

1. To measure levels and trends in the illegal hunting of elephants;

2. To determine changes in these trends over time; and

3. To determine the factors causing or associated with such changes, and to try and assess in
particular to what extent observed trends are a result of any decisions taken by the Conference
of the Parties to CITES

Under the programme data are being collected from all sites on monthly basis in specified MIKE
patrol form and submited to Sub Regional Support Office for South Asia Programme located in
Delhi who are assisting Ministry in the implementation of the progremme.
Mike Sites in India
1. Chirang Ripu (Assam )

2. Dhang Patki ( Assam )

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3. Eastern Dooars ( WB )

4. Deomali ( Arun Pradesh )

5. Garo Hills ( Meghalaya )

6. Mayurbhanj ( Orissa )

7. Mysore ( Karnataka )

8. Nilgiri ( T N )

9. Shivalik ( Uttarakhand )

10. Wayanad ( Kerala)

Indian Elephant Population Figures:

India is home to between 50 and 60% of all of Asia’s wild elephants and about 20% of the
domesticated elephants. As such, the country is of paramount importance for the survival of the
species. The elephant plays a central role in Indian life and has done for many centuries.
Elephants are closely associated with religious and cultural heritage, playing an important role in
the country’s history. They remain revered today.
An India without elephants is simply unimaginable.

Elephant Range: 110,000 km² approx

Country Ranking: 2nd of 13

Total Wild Elephants: 23,900 – 32,900 total

10,300 -17,400 (south)

2,400 – 2,700 (central)

10,300 – 11,300 (north-east)

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900 – 1,500 (north-west)

Country Ranking: 1st of 13

Total Captive Population: 3,500

Country Ranking: 3rd

Source: R Sukumar – A Brief Review of the Status, Distribution and Biology of Wild Asian
Elephants Elephas maximus- International Zoo Yearbook 2006
While this information source is considered the very best available, accurate data on wild
elephant populations is difficult to obtain and scientifically verify.

Wild Elephants in India

In past centuries, the forests of India literally teemed with elephants. Although no census or
estimates of the wild population exist, it is said that in the early 17th century the Moghul
Emperor Jehangir had 113,000 captive elephants throughout his empire. Extrapolating from this
figure, it is easy to imagine a wild population comfortably in excess of a million.
Today’s population is obviously a fraction of that, but large numbers of sustainable herds exist –
particularly in the south and northeast.
Wild elephants in India are facing a variety of problems, but most focus around the usual issues
of habitat loss and human-elephant conflict. These have been on the increase since the middle of
the 20th century as the explosion of the population and the demands of economic development
led to the clearing and cultivation of former elephant habitat.
Concern for the threat to the elephant led to the formation in 1992 of the government backed
“Project Elephant”. This scheme was intended to preserve habitat and establish elephant
corridors, allowing for the traditional migration patterns of established elephant herds.
Addressing human-elephant conflict issues and improving the welfare of domesticated elephants
was also a central part of the organisation’s brief.
The organisation presided over the establishment of 25 Elephant Reserves throughout the
elephants’ traditional range and covering a total area of 58,000 km². A population survey of the
reserves in 2005 found that over 21,000 elephants were living in the protected areas and the
population was actually on the increase.
Project Elephant has also established the MIKE (Monitoring of Illegal Killing of Elephants)
programme of CITES. This has uncovered a significant increase in the poaching of bull tuskers,
which has damaged the population dynamics by disturbing the sex ratio. In some areas, the
normal level of 1:12 (male-female) has been so distorted that 1:100 has been known. This
abnormality seriously affects the genetic viability of what on the surface can look like healthy
sustainable populations.
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Domesticated Elephants in India:

India has a long history of elephants in domestication with the animals participating in many
areas of Indian life from war and ceremonial use to transport, construction and logging.
A survey by Project Elephant in the year 2000 found a total of 3,400 domesticated elephants
owned by the following groups:
Private owners: 2,540

Temples: 190

Forest departments: 480

Zoos: 80

Circuses: 110

The elephants are engaged in the following types of work:

1. Temple Elephants – A number of temples provide a permanent home for elephants, including
one that houses 63! The presence of an elephant greatly enhances the temple’s status and money
raising capability. However, temple elephants are not by any means well-cared for and some are
permanently chained to the same spot for their entire existence.

2. Ceremonial and Festival Use – November-May is festival season in India and many towns and
villages hold religious events at which it is desirable to have one or more elephants present.
Often the elephants are richly caparisoned with decoration and colour. Many of these elephants
are hired out by private owners. The elephants often have to work every day of the week
standing in the hot sun while noise and movement occurs all around them. It is exceptionally
difficult work. After the festival is over, the elephants will face a long walk to the next festival.

3. Begging street elephants – Many owners and mahouts use the elephants to exploit the public’s
reverence for the animals by using them to beg for money on the streets. Conditions in the cities
are totally unsuitable for elephants and the life is exceptionally hard.

4. Tourist elephants – Approximately 100-120 elephants work in the tourist trade giving rides. Of
these, 87 work at the Amber Fort in Jaipur and are reportedly overworked and in poor condition.
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5. Forest Department Elephants – These elephants are largely used by Rangers to patrol protected
areas.

6. Circus elephants

7. Zoo elephants
India has some of the strictest elephant legislation in Asia, which should provide adequate
protection for the country’s 3,600 domesticated elephants. However the laws are rarely adhered
to or enforced and many of India’s captive elephants suffer as a result.

Summary:
There is a mixed picture with regards to elephant conservation and welfare issues in India.
Project Elephant has made a huge difference and provided a focus for conservation effort.
Although there are still many remaining problems, these efforts are beginning to bear fruit
regarding the conservation of India’s wild elephants.
The situation regarding the captive animal reveals a more worrying trend. Despite a rich culture
of domesticated elephants, many animals are not receiving the welfare they require under the law
and are suffering as a result.

Project Elephant:
Project Elephant is a wildlife conservation project initiated in India in February 1992 with
the aim to provide financial and technical support to major elephant bearing States in the
country for protection of elephants, their habitats and corridors.
Though this centrally sponsored scheme began with a thrust on elephant conservation in the
various elephant populous bio-geographical regions of the country, it expanded its view to
adopt a more comprehensive approach to the subsidiary issues of human-elephant conflict
and welfare of domesticated elephants.
The Project demarcated 13 States to implement its efforts to maintaining a viable Elephant
population in their natural habitat. The states being:

 Andhra pradesh
 Arunachal Pradesh
 Assam
 Jharkhand
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 Karnataka
 Kerala
 Meghalaya
 Nagaland
 Orissa
 Tamil Nadu
 Uttranchal
 Uttar Pradesh
 West Bengal

For a better understanding of the main activities of the Project, they are listed below:

 Ecologically restoring the existing natural habitats and migratory routes of elephants
 Developing of scientific methods for conservation of elephant habitats and viable population
of Wild Asiatic elephants in India and ensuring their continuance through planned
management.
 Promoting measures for mitigating man-elephant conflict in crucial habitats and as far as
possible negating the undue pressures of human and domestic stock activities in crucial
elephant habitats
 Ensuring strictest adherence to "No poaching" acts formulated for Wild elephants and
minimizing cases of unnatural deaths of elephants due to human or other interference.
 Research on Elephant management related issues.
 Conducting Public education and awareness programmes.
 Providing for veterinary care of the wild elephants.
 Undertaking Eco-development as a major step to fortify their efforts at wildlife
conservation.

Conclusion:
Elephants are kind animals and are are better feed and cared for in the wild than in zoos or
circus'. Elephants have their moments but for the most part save humans from predators and can
do amazing things when you don't expect it. The elephants are an endangered species following
the rapid increase in the human population. ... To protect the wild animals, we need to curb
habitat destruction, forbid hunting and property trade of elephants.