Wildlife Institute of India report lists persistent hotspots for elephant mortality and human casualties in Keralam
The Wildlife Institute of India (WII) released a report identifying persistent hotspots of elephant mortality and human casualties in Kerala.
Kanan Devan Hills, Kuttampuzha, Chittar, Mankulam, Padavayal, and Peechi were identified as the locations with recurring elephant deaths and human-elephant conflict incidents.
The report is part of a broader regional assessment of human-elephant conflict covering multiple south Indian states.
Findings point to conflict being concentrated in specific landscapes linked to recurring pressures such as habitat fragmentation, railway and road infrastructure, electric fencing/power lines, and expanding human settlements near forest fringes.
Wildlife Institute of India (WII) — Institutional Mandate
The Wildlife Institute of India is an autonomous institution under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), established in 1982 and granted autonomy in 1986. Headquartered in Dehradun, it is the nodal national agency for research, training, and advisory work in wildlife conservation, and regularly produces technical reports that feed into MoEFCC policy on species conservation and human-wildlife conflict management.
Key Details
- Established 1982; granted autonomous status in 1986; based in Chandrabani, Dehradun (Uttarakhand)
- Functions under the administrative control of MoEFCC
- Conducts research on endangered species, wildlife forensics, ecology, and conflict mitigation; also runs training courses for forest service officers
- Frequently commissioned to produce state/regional action plans on human-wildlife conflict, which then inform Project Elephant and state forest department interventions
The hotspot report is a WII technical output that operationalises the government's broader human-elephant conflict mitigation strategy by pinpointing exact micro-landscapes in Kerala requiring priority intervention (early-warning systems, fencing, corridor protection).
Project Elephant (1992) and Human-Elephant Conflict Management
Project Elephant is a centrally sponsored scheme launched in 1992 under MoEFCC to protect elephants, their habitats, and migration corridors, and to mitigate human-elephant conflict across elephant range states. It funds anti-depredation measures, elephant corridor securing, and compensation mechanisms, and works alongside state forest departments.
Key Details
- Launched 1992; implemented in about 22-23 states/UTs with free-ranging elephant populations, including Kerala
- Focus areas: habitat and corridor protection, conflict mitigation (early warning, physical/electric barriers, compensation for crop and human loss), and welfare of captive elephants
- Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Odisha and West Bengal are repeatedly flagged in recent WII assessments as high-conflict states in the southern/eastern belt
- Complemented by public-awareness initiatives such as Gaj Yatra (launched 2017), promoting human-elephant coexistence
The hotspots named in the report (Kanan Devan Hills, Kuttampuzha, Chittar, Mankulam, Padavayal, Peechi) fall within Kerala's elephant landscape and are the kind of granular data Project Elephant and the state forest department use to prioritise funding for barriers, corridors, and rapid-response teams.
Legal Protection Status of the Asian Elephant
The Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) enjoys the highest tier of statutory protection in India and is also globally recognised as a threatened species, which is why elephant mortality data — whether from poaching, train/vehicle collisions, electrocution, or conflict retaliation — is treated as a significant conservation and enforcement indicator.
Key Details
- Schedule I species under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 — the highest protection category, prohibiting hunting and trade
- Listed as "Endangered" on the IUCN Red List
- Listed in Appendix I of CITES, prohibiting international commercial trade
- Declared India's National Heritage Animal in 2010
Because the elephant is a Schedule I/IUCN Endangered species, deaths recorded in the WII hotspot report (from causes such as train hits, electrocution, poisoning, or human conflict) carry legal and conservation significance, triggering mandatory reporting and mitigation obligations for state forest departments.
- WII established: 1982; granted autonomy: 1986; headquartered in Dehradun, functions under MoEFCC
- Project Elephant launched: 1992; implemented in roughly 22-23 elephant range states/UTs
- Asian elephant: Schedule I (Wildlife Protection Act, 1972), IUCN "Endangered," CITES Appendix I, National Heritage Animal (2010)
- Kerala hotspots named in the report: Kanan Devan Hills, Kuttampuzha, Chittar, Mankulam, Padavayal, Peechi
- Broader regional human-elephant conflict assessment by WII covers Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, and West Bengal