Man-elephant conflicts in Meghalaya claimed 25 lives in 5 yrs

Shillong: Nearly 10,000 cases of conflicts between humans and elephants have been reported from Meghalaya in the past five years, claiming the lives of 25 people and causing widespread damage to crops, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India has said.

The state is home to around 1,800 elephants and the Garo Hills region itself accounts for approximately two-thirds of such conflicts, said the CAG report for the year ended March 31, 2017, recently tabled by Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma in the Assembly. “Over 9,622 cases of human-elephant conflicts (HEC) were registered with the forest department, resulting in death of 25 persons, injury to 22 persons and damage of crops in about 4,009 ha (hectare) area,” it said.

The CAG report, covering the period between 2012 and 2017, stated that over 6,500 cases were registered in the Garo Hills region, including the Balpakram National Park. Around 2,500 cases were reported from the Khasi Hills region. An amount of Rs 4.41 crore was paid as ex-gratia payment to villagers for loss of life, damage to properties and agricultural crops, it said.


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