PRESERVING THE PATHWAYS: THE ELEPHANT CORRIDORS

Sneha Smriti & Prakhar Aditya

ABSTRACT

This article aims to discuss the prospect of Elephant corridors. It firstly discusses the need for these corridors, before elaborating upon the definition of the same. Thereafter, it delves into the procedure of establishing said corridors. This article also takes up a discussion on the prominent corridors already present in India and the problems faced by them due to humans. Finally, the questions of legality and the power of the authorities to declare such corridors have been thoroughly discussed.

I. INTRODUCTION

Elephants have always been considered an integral part of the animal kingdom, especially in India. Often associated with the emotion of strength, power, and intelligence, the elephant has been worshiped in the country for centuries. Asian elephants, scientifically known as the elephas maximus, had been the kings of a large chunk of Indian jungles till they were threatened by the intruding nature of human activities[1]. The developmental activities and scientific programs have forced the elephants into much smaller regions in the forest[2]. This has greatly impacted both species, with the humans often losing their lives due to unwanted interaction with the elephants and the elephants being restricted in their eating habits and mating opportunities[3]. This necessitated the need for a system that would provide ease of existence and protection to both the elephants and the humans. This led to the introduction of the concept of Elephant Corridors in India, which would be our topic of discussion for this paper.

Figure 1

In the first part of the paper, we will discuss the basics of the elephant corridor, what they mean, their way of functioning, and their benefits. In the second part, we will look at the inception of these corridors in India and the role of different stakeholders in the same. Then, we shall try to understand the way in which these corridors are discovered in different parts of the country. In the next part, we will look at the prominent elephant corridors of India, their importance in a geographical context and then specifically focus on the ‘Project Elephant’, which has been introduced by the Government of India. Lastly, we will analyse the view taken by the Supreme Court with regard to these migratory routes to better understand the legality of these elephant corridors.

II. WHAT ARE ELEPHANT CORRIDORS

Indian Elephants were facing a lot of geographical issues with the introduction of human developmental activities in the forests. This necessitated the need for a system that would provide protection to the elephants[4]. Project Elephant was introduced by the Central Government as a measure for the same and to help the elephants with their movement through different forests for a better life. This scheme was first introduced in 1992 as a scheme sponsored by the central government[5]. A corridor can be understood as a passageway that allows an easy connection between several divisions. An elephant corridor serves a similar purpose. This can be understood as a patch of forest land connecting the forest areas with the elephant population, which facilitates easy movement through human habitats[6].

Oftentimes, there is ambiguity about what would comprise an elephant corridor and what would not. This has been due to the lack of clarity in the definition of an elephant corridor, which has never been clearly defined by the Government. People associate the movement paths of elephants, and the migratory and grazing routes as corridors as well. This has necessitated the need to clarify a definition of elephant corridors that is free of any ambiguity. A reference could be made to the international initiatives to better understand how this ambiguity can be solved. One of these can be the Monitoring of Illegal Killing of Elephants (MIKE) Program, which was started in South Asia in 2003.

Figure 2

The figure shows the dimensions of a corridor in the form of its length and breadth. This allows the officials to determine whether the corridor would be a narrow corridor or a wide corridor. This is done based on some conditions, like the risk of it being severed due to the change of land over time, the possibility of developmental activities in that area, and the occurrence of natural disasters in that area, among others. This makes the determination of the length and width of the corridors very important.

A total of 101 elephant corridors have been identified in India by the Wildlife Trust of India under the National Elephant Corridor Project. The main objective of these corridors is to ensure the welfare of the elephants which are stuck in small forest patches. These would also serve as a way of protecting the elephants, their habitat, and their grazing sites while also addressing the issues faced due to the human-animal conflict.

III. THE INCEPTION OF ELEPHANT CORRIDORS

The concept of elephant corridors was created to facilitate the functioning and growth of elephant populations. Elephants do not interbreed, as was discovered in a shocking study conducted by Swedish experts[7]. Thus, the isolation of small groups of elephants is extremely dangerous, and they may become extinct. This necessitates the creation of migratory corridors for elephants. These routes help to connect the discrete populations and help in the facilitation of the gene flow.

To solve these problems and other issues that plague the elephant population, Project Elephant was initiated with a multi-fold aim which broadly included[8] -

1. To protect - habitats and corridors used by elephants

2. To resolve human-animal conflict

3. Ensure the safety and security of captured elephants

Other activities to be undertaken by the 16 states selected in this include the restoration of migratory routes used by elephants[9]. However, protecting the pre-existing corridors, especially of the limited number existing in 1992 - when Project Elephant was initiated - would not be a sufficient solution. The protection of corridors is easier said than done, with the increase in developmental activities interfering with the process[10]. Moreover, creating new corridors is even more difficult, as they shall be created by uprooting existing infrastructure and replacing them. However, there are watertight legislations backed by constitutional powers enshrined in the Concurrent List of the Seventh Schedule.

Elephant Corridors were created by the Wild Life (Protection) Act of 1972[11]. Section 36A of the aforementioned Act, titled ‘Declaration and management of a conservation reserve’ gives the State Governments the power to declare areas that link one protected area with another i.e., migratory corridors, as conservation reserves after consulting with the local communities[12]. However, this area must be owned by the State Government itself. For declaring land owned by the Central Government as reserved areas, the State Government must concur with the Central Government. However, the authority of Project Elephant has been doubted.

The authority of this provision has been given in the Constitution of India. List III of the Seventh Schedule, as given under Article 246, lays out the Concurrent list over which both the State Legislatures and the Parliament have the power to make laws[13]. The State Government gets the power to declare corridors as reserves in pursuance of entries 17A and 17B of the concurrent list. These entries read as: 17A - Forests and 17B - Protection of wild animals and birds[14]. Apart from these constitutional provisions, the courts have also upheld this position when the Hon’ble Supreme Court gave its judgment with regard to the legality of the Elephant Corridors in Nilgiri hills.

IV. HOW ARE ELEPHANT CORRIDORS FOUND?

The obvious method of finding, pitting, and establishing Elephant Corridors is through observation of the migration patterns of the animals. The two major observation methods are through the observation of natural indicators for the presence of elephants in the vicinity or through the employment of technology for these purposes. These observations are then used to formulate the plans that legislative bodies shall use to establish the same as Elephant Corridors.

The first method of inspection, which includes looking for trails, essentially lies upon the naturally observable reactions present in well-known routes. These reactions include, but are not limited to, elephant droppings, skeletal fragments, wallowing sites, and trails[15]. Apart from these observations, the local villagers and other foresters may also be consulted to note the movement of elephants.

The other method of surveillance relies on technological aspects. Radio-telemetry studies may be conducted in non-forested areas using Very High Frequency (VHF)[16].

Apart from this, another method of finding Corridors is by collaring elephants and tracking their location using GPS. The GPS points are plotted and mapped to locate the possible corridors accurately. Thus, the geographical boundaries of elephant corridors are discovered.

After such discovery, the legislative provisions related to said corridors begin their process. These corridors are demarcated as protected regions under Article 36A of the Wild Life Protection Act, 1972.

However, there is a clear presence of inactivity and complacency amidst the government bodies meant to help protect elephants. Elephant reserves, which also include the aspect of elephant corridors, are not treated any different than forest land or revenue land[17]. Thus, acts that are not permissible in permitted areas are also allowed in these elephant reserves. This does not give any special powers to areas declared as elephant reserves.

V. THE PROMINENT ELEPHANT CORRIDORS IN INDIA

India is a great host to the Asian Elephant, with over 60 percent of the world’s elephant population calling India home[18]. Although these gentle beasts were once widespread throughout the country, this variance has gone down. There are four major regions that show the presence of elephants. These are - Southern, Northern, Central, and North-eastern parts of India[19]. To look at the prominent corridors throughout India, we shall look at said corridors in a systematic manner. About 101 elephant corridors have been described and demarcated by the Wildlife Trust of India under the National Elephant Corridor project[20]. These corridors are divided as follows[21]:

1. Southern Region of India - 28

2. North-Western Region of India - 11

3. Central Region of India - 25

4. Northern West-Bengal - 14

5. North-Eastern Region of India - 23

Firstly, if we were to take up the Southern Region, there are about 5900 elephants near the Western Ghats. In combination with those near the Eastern Ghats, the actual population exceeds 8000[22]. Some of these corridors, along with the problems that accompany them are:

Ragihalli corridor - This corridor, between Karadikkal and Madeshwara in Karnataka, is plagued by a number of developmental activities, such as stone quarries and other mining activities. Furthermore, there are a number of resorts on the southern boundary of the corridor.

Tali - Bilikkal - Another major corridor, this connects the Bannerghatta National Park to the Cauvery North Wildlife Sanctuary. This corridor is threatened by human settlements in Dodduru and Belalam, among other places.

Moving towards the North-Western Elephant Corridors of India, they used to extend from Katerniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary to the Yamuna River; however, there has been a substantial increase in fragmentation. This has reduced elephant habitats and has hampered the migration of elephants. Human-elephant conflict has, thus, increased.

Another major problem in this region is the huge number of inhabited areas. There are no policies to deal with this occupation, which has severely hampered the situation. The continued dependence of migrants on the forest for supplies has worsened the elephant habitats. However, there is an upcoming silver lining. The relocation of certain communities has led to a revival of the forests. This is a piece of tremendously good news as this may be the way to go for reviving elephant reserves that are currently disturbed or destroyed.

The Elephant Habitats present in Central India pose an extremely fragmented form of habitat. This fragmentation has occurred due to a number of infrastructural and other developmental activities, such as mining. This region boasts a notoriously high number of Human-elephant conflicts; 45% of deaths caused due to elephants happen here despite hosting merely 10% of the elephant populace.

The Corridors present in Northern West Bengal form an interesting group as it is often seen as the westward extension of the North-Eastern Elephant Corridors. However, they are extremely different from the latter as they lie between the foothills of the Himalayas and the Gangetic floodplains. The majority of the elephant corridors lie under direct or indirect human inhabitation, as tea plantations take up 22%, agricultural fields 17%, and direct human control is exerted upon 27% of the corridors of the region.

The elephants of North-Eastern India have faced a severe decline because of the continued degradation and extreme fragmentation. The elephants are left stranded in discrete regions, which can mainly be clubbed into two main regions - the northern part of the Brahmaputra and the southern part of Brahmaputra. The southern populace is further divided into the eastern, western, and central groups of elephants.

Hence, there is a huge spread of elephant corridors throughout the nation, and they have been going downhill due to the increased amount of human intervention. The protection of the migratory routes, along with the elephant reserves in general, is of paramount importance.

VI. PROJECT ELEPHANT

The Government of India introduced Project Elephant in 1992 in order to provide ways for the protection of elephants along with their migration routes and grazing land[23]. This is managed by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Changes and applicable in 16 States and Union Territories, including Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Jharkhand, and Uttar Pradesh, among others. One of the main aims of the project is to provide for the long-term survival of the elephants, especially in their natural habitat[24]. It also facilitates the study being carried out for managing the ecology of the elephants and finding ways to spread awareness about their conservation.

The program has been officially launched under the MIKE (Monitoring of Illegal Killing of Elephants) Program, which has been running under the CITES since January 2004[25]. The main goal of this program includes measuring the trend of poaching of elephants in different countries, the change in the trend over time and determining the reason for the changes, and recommending ways in which the number can be reduced.

Some of these undertaken under this project are[26]:

1. Carrying out research on the management of elephants

2. Spreading awareness about the conservation of elephants

3. Promoting eco-development

4. Allowing for the veterinary care of the species

5. Establishing the rehabilitation and welfare centres

6. Taking steps for the restoration of the existing natural habitats

7. Mitigation of the human-animal conflict, especially in areas of constant tussle

8. Protecting the animal from illegal attacks and poaching

One of the major contributions made by Project Elephant is the 36-month research project they carried out in the years 2003-04 to 2006-07[27]. This was carried out with the help of Central Rice Research Institute (CRRI), Cuttack, with the purpose of developing high-yielding paddy which would not be eaten by the elephants, development of storage systems which could not be destroyed by elephants, and finding safe elephant repellents. This was to ensure that the interference of elephants in human activities would be reduced, removing one probable reason for humans attacking elephants when they enter human habitats. Another research that the project carried out was the ‘Disease management in captive elephants’ carried out with the Assam Agriculture University[28]. This was done to find possible antidotes and medicines for the hurt and diseased elephants, which were often caught up in a small patch of land due to the lack of available elephant corridors.

The project also played a major role in promoting eco-tourism in the country. They provided for the various veterinarians who came to check upon the domesticated and wild elephants in the jungles of Kerala, Assam, and Thrissur. They also provided for the domestication of elephants who were sick such that they could be cared for with the help of microchips. However, all these aspects require a necessary role of the legislature and judiciary which shall be understood in the upcoming section.

VII. THE LEGALITY OF ELEPHANT CORRIDORS

There have been only a few instances where the Courts have been involved in the development and functioning of the elephant corridors. It has been an area of development that had been outside the gates of the Courts for the longest time till a Public Interest Litigation was filed in the Madras High Court based on a notification released by the Tamil Nadu government for declaring an elephant corridor in Nilgiris Sigur plateau[29]. This corridor is situated in the middle of both the Western and Eastern Ghats and serves as the home for a large number of elephant families. Being situated near both the Moyar river valley and the Nilgiri hills, the elephants often cross these places in search of food and for mating with the females of other families. This necessitated a corridor for the safer movement of elephants, which was introduced by the government.

In the case of the Hospitality Association of Mudumalai v In Defence of Environment and Animals, the Madras High Court had initially upheld the validity of the government’s notification, considering them fully empowered to do the same[30]. They referred to Article 51A(g) of the Constitution and the rights given under Project Elephant for the same[31]. Article 51A(g) says that it is the fundamental duty of every citizen of India to contribute towards the welfare of the natural environment, which includes wildlife. The Court also gave orders to the hotel and resort owners of that area to vacate the property which has been given for the establishment of the corridor.

However, an appeal of the same was raised in the Supreme Court of India. Questions were raised regarding the power made available to the State Government for passing orders on land which was a part of the private forest and if they had the power to remove the resorts and private landowners which were situated in that area. The Supreme Court stated that the government is empowered to take necessary measures for the protection of forests and wildlife, which falls under its territorial jurisdiction as has been stated in entries 17A and 17B of the Concurrent list in the Constitution[32]. The same also extends to private forest land under Articles 21, 47, 48A, and 51A(g), which allows the government to limit commercial activities in an area[33].

The Court made reference to the material used by the government to show the increasing number of human-animal conflicts in that area due to the unrestricted increase in the number of private hotels and resorts. References were also made to the increasing number of elephant accidents due to an increase in the number of construction activities carried out in the area. This was considered an issue by the Supreme Court due as the mushrooming of resorts was leading to the narrowing down of the area left for elephants, especially for those families which had to travel.

The Court was also seen referring to the case of M. C. Mehta v Union of India as a precedent to support the government’s standpoint[34]. The case clearly stated that taking precautionary measures for the welfare of the environment has been accepted. The State would have a clear mandate to protect and improve the environment and take steps to safeguard the forest and wildlife. Based on the same reasoning, in the current case, it becomes the duty of the State to take steps in order to restrict commercial activities in an area with an elephant corridor.

This case serves as a source of light for the welfare of animals in the country and a curb in the increasing number of commercial activities being carried out near their homes. The appointment of a conservationist like Nandita Hazarika as a member of the Technical Committee by the Supreme Court shows their consideration in matters like these[35]. However, there is still a long way to go when considering the solution to these human-animal conflicts.

VIII. CONCLUSION

In conclusion, Elephant Corridors are an excellent method of protecting and conserving the revered animals, as they serve as vital linkages between the currently fragmented habitats. The article has elaborately discussed the provisions that have allowed for the creation of the Corridors. Moreover, it has also aimed to settle the discussion around protection of the Environment and Human Developmental Activities which hamper said protection.

Elephant Corridors signify a ray of hope in the survival of elephants, amongst other animals that may benefit from a similar initiative such as tigers. It is high time that awareness around the corridors is increased to work towards their preservation, because with the exponential rate of extinction, we must account for every step taken against the environment in lieu of ‘development’.

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