State Govt 'Recklessly' Permitted Human Settlements Near Elephant Habitats Leading To Increased Instances Of Man-Animal Conflicts: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court on Wednesday remarked that it is the State’s reckless actions in allowing human settlements near elephant habitats that have led to frequent human-animal conflicts.

A division bench of Justice A.K.Jayasankaran Nambiar and Justice Gopinath P made the observation while considering a review petition filed by Nenmara MLA K. Babu, against the order of the Court dated April 5, 2023, directing the relocation of the wild tusker 'Arikomban' to Parambikulam Tiger Reserve.

The review petition was filed citing apprehensions of residents near the proposed site of translocation about the elephant entering human settlements. However the court refused to interfere with its earlier direction.

“The increasing instances of human elephant conflict that we are confronted with today appear to be nothing but inevitable fallouts of the apparently reckless executive action of yesteryears. The long-term solution to the problem may lie in re-visiting, and in appropriate cases reversing, those decisions, and restoring to the animals their lost habitat but that will take time,” the Court said.

The court observed that reports of the State Forest and Wildlife department show that in many cases settlements were allowed to be built in areas where elephants live, despite clear evidence of elephant habitats. These reckless decisions by the government in the past has led to more conflicts between humans and elephants. The long term solution to this problem, the court said, might be to reverse some of these decisions and give back the elephants their habitats. However, restoring the natural habitats of affected animals will take time, it observed.

“there are reports submitted by the Forest and Wildlife department of the State that suggest that some of the settlements that have come up in the areas falling within or in the vicinity of established elephant habitats in the State, were authorised by the State government in gross disregard of the safety of the persons proposed for settlement therein, as they were permitted to reside in those areas notwithstanding clear data that showed them to be elephant habitats. “

The Court stated that until the long-term issue is resolved, the State must take immediate steps to protect settlements near wildlife habitats. They should set up local task forces with officials from different departments and the local Panchayat President, who will work with the community to put in place protective measures to prevent animal attacks, the court suggested.

“The above steps would constitute the bare minimum of the State’s obligation to protect the lives of the people in the locality while balancing their rights with the rights ensuring to the animals in the wild.”

Case Title: K Babu V Union Of India

Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (Ker) 186

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