By M M Thimmaiah
Until about three decades ago, elephants in Kodagu (Coorg) district in Karnataka, lived in the deciduous forests along the eastern periphery bordering Mysuru and Hassan districts.
Protected forests such as Nagarahole,Mavkal, Devamachi and Maldare ranges hosted hundreds of elephants. Elephants were rarely seen on the western hills of Brahmagiri, Pattighat and Pushpagiri ranges. Senior villagers in the entire belt from Irpu-Birunani to Kakkabbe- Bhagamandala swear that they had never seen elephants in their villages until recently.
Occasional crop raiding in the eastern villages was a seasonal phenomenon, mostly targeting paddy fields just before the ripening of the crop. Farmers used traditional methods such as lighting small fires and beating drums to keep the elephants at bay. Raiding herds came at night and left the fields before day break.
The steady increase in human-elephant conflict in Kodagu in recent years has many causes.
Overpopulation:
Effective conservation measures enforced after the enactment of Wildlife Protection Act 1972, elimination of big time poachers like Veerappan and discontinuation of Khedda operations created a conducive ecosystem for increase in wild elephant population.
Shrinking Habitat:
On the other hand there was a slow shrinkage of their natural habitat in the deciduous forest belt due to the continued planting of teak and softwood species. The result of this program, which continued until the late 70s became visible much later when large tracts transformed into mature monoculture zones erasing the diverse undergrowth which had sustained large mammals. By the beginning of this century the growing elephant numbers started spilling over to private lands.
The last Nail:
Human-elephant conflict intensified in the last 15 years after the last cycle of bamboo flowering which occurred around 2010. People of my generation have seen two events of bamboo flowering, once in the early 60s of the last century and the other more recent one. During the earlier bamboo flowering, the dead bamboo stalks were removed and sold to paper mills and viscose factories clearing the land for early regeneration of bamboo. During recent event, the fallen bamboo clumps were left as it is hindering the moment of wild animals and covering the shrubs and grasses denying animals a large part of their forage. In some areas the fallen bamboo clumps were burnt destroying the bamboo seeds. These unwise steps which coincided with a few draught years significantly delayed the regeneration of bamboo. The open space vacated by the dead bamboo was taken over by invasive species such as lantana, Chemolina and Parthanium making large tracts of the deciduous forests inhospitable for wildlife. Grasslands have disappeared making way for weeds. The authorities remained unconcerned when these invasive species appeared initially in the protected forests and have realised the enormity of the crisis when it has gone beyond control.
The great westward migration:
With the degradation of their natural habitat elephants started moving into paddy fields and coffee plantations where they found rich grass as well as scattered groves of banana, jackfruit, arecanut and during season, ripe coffee. Thousands of Irrigation tanks offered abundant water to quench their thirst in summer months unlike the parched landscape of government forests.
Occasional crop raiding episodes were replaced by elephant herds moving permanently into coffee plantations and settling down in neglected estates or finding refuge in nearby Devarakadus after exploring nearby Coffee estates at night. As the number of elephants outside the protected forests increased there began a grand westward migration of entire elephant herds across the whole landscape of Kodagu finally reaching the western Evergreen and Shola forests of the western hills.
A gem in a green valley:
Kodagu is a geographically unique district with more than hundred inhabited villages surrounded by forests on all sides. Now that the elephants have taken over all surrounding forests and established bases in the Devarakadus and neglected plantation lands all over the District, it would seem that the whole of Kodagu has become an elephant habitat.
Ineffective measures:
Karnataka Forest Department has tried to mitigate the problem of human-elephant conflict by erecting physical barriers to prevent elephants exiting the forests and driving the elephants found in private lands back to the forests. Both these measures have been spectacular failures. Elephant proof trenches, solar electric fence and rail barriers erected at enormous cost have been a waste of money because of poor maintenance and difficult terrain that offers many escape routes to elephants which are highly intelligent animals.
The futile attempt in driving the elephants to nearby forests is a costly and dangerous exercise as they return within days hungry and in an aggressive mood.
A false narrative:
Finding solutions to the serious problem requires understanding its root causes which lie in the steady growth in elephant population and the utter degradation of their designated natural habitat. Suppressing these facts Forest Department and conservation groups have been spreading a false narrative that elephants are entering human settlements because of shrinkage of the area of their natural habitats due to human encroachments and development activities. Both the explanations are not true at least in Kodagu. The extent of protected forests in Kodagu, which included natural elephant habitats,(around 1260 sq kms out of the the total geographical area of 4100 sq kms)has remained intact for the last several decades . What has decreased is the extent of revenue forests (paisari lands), which have been brought under cultivation or occupied by landless people. These small land parcels inside inhabited villages were never part of original elephant habitat in Kodagu.
Then there is the myth of elephant corridors, based on half-baked research, the blocking of which is claimed as one reason for the entry of elephants into inhabited areas. The land connecting the Nagarahole forest to the smaller deciduous forests of North Kodagu and Hassan has not been blocked. The Elephants herds are however now moving westward into densely populated villages and not northwards since those forests are also overpopulated with elephants. It is now clear that elephants go in search of food and water wherever they can find both and are not bound by some remembered routes or corridors.
An existential crisis:
The disruption caused by the intrusion of elephants into human settlements has not only caused serious loss of lives and property but also disrupted agricultural operations and everyday life. Children cannot walk to schools and village paths have become unsafe for walking.
Public protests have focused on payment of adequate compensation, effective maintenance of physical barriers and finding a permanent solution to the problem. The government has responded with payment of token compensation and capture of a handful rouge elephants which are kept in nearby camps.
It is now clear that it will be impossible to contain the growing numbers of elephants within the protected forests even if more funds are allocated for erecting physical barriers. Desperately hungry elephants will overcome these obstacles.
Reclaiming the degraded forests after removal of invasive weeds and regenerating natural forest landscapes is a long term project with very low chance of success.
Farmers of Kodagu and neighbouring areas have patiently borne the continued economic losses and imminent threat to life out of the respect for law and genuine support for wildlife conservation. The deliberate precedence to animal rights over human rights may soon lead to violent protests and desperate measures by victims of elephant depredation.
What we need therefore is a bold unconventional strategy to eliminate the existential threat posed to the lives and livelihoods of the people of Kodagu. It should include two short term measures – a massive operation to capture all the elephants living in private lands and their translocation to a vast enclosure where they should be provided with sustenance; and strengthening the physical barriers to prevent other elephants from entering private lands.
The long term solution to the problem lies in controlling the growth of elephant population to the carrying capacity of the available natural habitat through sterilisation of female elephants for which it seems effective drugs are now available.
In the meantime a programme to reclaim the natural deciduous forests from invasive weeds may also be taken up for whatever it is worth.
If the present intolerable situation is allowed to continue without taking necessary drastic steps, it will lead to a gradual exodus of people from Kodagu destroying a whole culture and way of life of the indigenous people. Only a few large plantations may be able to take the expensive measures for protecting their private lands with effective barriers, leaving the majority of the small growers and other inhabitants to the mercy of marauding elephant herds. Finally the brave people of Kodagu who challenged the mighty army of Tippu Sultan may have to surrender to a four legged mammal and to the indifference of a careless government machinery.