Odisha continues to earn the dubious distinction of recording the maximum human deaths owing to human-pachyderm conflict despite being home to a lower number of elephants compared to India’s major elephant habitats in Karnataka, Assam, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu.
As per the “Status of Elephants in India: DNA based synchronous all India population estimation of elephants” (2025) census conducted by Wildlife Institute of India, Odisha is home to 912 elephants, compared to Karnataka’s 6,013, Assam’s 4,159, Kerala’s 2,785 and Tamil Nadu’s 3,136, Uttarakhand (1,792), West Bengal (707) and Chhattisgarh (451).
On the other hand, Odisha topped human deaths in 2024-25 with 171 deaths, followed by Jharkhand (87), West Bengal (53), Assam (74) and Tamil Nadu (61).
The alarming scenario of raging human-elephant conflict has hogged the spotlight in the wake of a horrifying incident reported on 10 February, when three women firewood collectors were killed and an equal number of women injured by a wild tusker at Patapuri Reserve Forest adjoining Kapilash Wildlife Sanctuary in Odisha’s Dhenkanal district.
Over the last five years, 2019-2024, Odisha recorded the highest cumulative death toll of 624 across India, revealing the extremely high levels of conflict.
Human kills per 100 elephants for 2024-25 stand at 17 in Odisha, which is the highest in India, compared to only 1 per 100 elephants in Karnataka and Kerala, respectively. Despite this disturbing trend, the State Government seems to have turned into a silent spectator as families lose their breadwinner – a poor farmer or a tribal firewood or food gatherer. The state Forest Department is apparently clueless about handling such recurring tragedies, pointed out Secretary of the Wildlife Society of Orissa and conservationist Biswajit Mohanty.
As another alarming trend unfolds, Odisha recorded a sharp population decline of nearly 1,100 elephants or 57 per cent in one year. The last census of November 2024 carried out by the forest department recorded 2,103 elephants, Mohanty stated.
The forest department has shirked its responsibility to address this ghastly human tragedy despite humongous amounts spent on consultancy, patrolling, and conflict management. Though the state government paid Rs 3.67 crores to a private consultant in 2016 for a wildlife conflict mitigation plan, there has been no relief for local villagers for 9 years, Mohanty further stated.
Though Odisha has been recording a rise in forest area as per Forest Survey of India reports, there has been a rapid rise in human-elephant conflict since elephants are stressed due to mining, industries, new highways, and a rise in railway traffic across the state. Railway lines carry trains with small intervals of less than 5 minutes, giving little time to elephants to cross in forest areas in many forested districts, the conservationist charged.
Stating that elephant movement in corridors is severely affected as they are degraded by quarrying and development, Mohanty maintained that the forest department did not notify 14 corridors to them, though a decision was taken by the then Chief Minister in 2012.
Rather, it has been claimed that corridors are not necessary for elephant survival in a case filed by the Wildlife Society of Orissa. Though the NGT issued final orders for notification of 14 corridors, the state government challenged this and obtained a stay order from the Orissa High Court, Mohanty concluded.