Indian elephants kill over 400 people every year and 100 elephants get killed in the retaliatory action, a government committee said, while recommending translocation of aggressive animals was a possible way to reduce the conflict.
The Elephant Task Force, in its report submitted to
environment minister Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday, also said elephants affect livelihood of five-lakh families, mostly poor ones, by destroying up to one million hectares of forestland.
The high conflict states identified are West Bengal, Assam, Orissa, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh. Of them Orissa, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh, mining activity has caused displacement of elephants.
"The loss of a significant part of or of whole home ranges or their severe degradation of renders the affected elephants "displaced" as their social structure and hierarchies do not allow them to move freely into the remaining habitat. Such elephants cause serious human elephant conflict problems," the committee said in its report.
In a set of 15 recommendations on how to deal with the growing problem, the committee has said translocation should be considered subject to strict conditions. But ruled out the possibility of relocating elephants from zoos to the wild.