Video: Wildlife Dept. accused of worsening human-elephant conflict

The Wildlife Department and several NGOs are worsening the human-elephant conflict instead of seeking solutions, alleged an organisation calling itself the National Movement for the Protection of Domesticated Elephants (NMPDE) today.

Staging a protest outside the Wildlife Resources Conservation Ministry in Battaramulla, the organisation said domesticated elephants had become targets.

“The number of human-elephant conflicts reported have increased rapidly and even some journalists had been attacked while reporting the conflict. As the Department and NGOs are responsible for the issue, they should come up with solutions,” asserted the Ven. Magalkande Sudatha Thera, the head of the movement.

He said reports indicated that about 250 wild elephants were killed annually due to various human activities.

“We will not call off the protest until a permanent solution is given by the minister or the secretary. We will even hold a hunger strike if we are not given a solution,” the Thera said.

The Thera further said they had requested the authorities to register all domesticated elephants, including baby elephants, and to implant a microchip in them with their registration and DNA details. (Indika Sri Aravinda)