Elephants kill 250 people in eastern India

The Times of India

5 Jun 2008

BHUBANESWAR: At least 250 people die on an average every year in the country's eastern states in the man-elephant conflict.

"Conflict with wild-elephants claims 250 lives in the east every year," A N Prasad, Inspector-General of Forests and Director of Project Elephant told a workshop on 'Man-Elephant Interface for the Eastern Region" on Wednesday.

The workshop was informed that Jharkhand reported the highest human casualty of 67 deaths in the region in 2006-07 while the death toll was 91 in 2005-06.

Jharkhand was followed by West Bengal which reported 47 casualties in 2006-07 against the previous year's toll of 85. Assam registered 67 and 47 deaths during 2005-06 and 2006-07 respectively.

Elephants killed 40 people in Orissa during 2005-06 which rose to 49 during 2006-07.

Wildlife officials of the four states, worried over the growing incidents of man-elephant conflict in the region, have decided to keep tabs on the movement of elephants and develop a network for cooperation, official sources said.

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