Editorial photo #10063316 Disaster and Accident

Sri Lanka Is The Country With The Highest Number Of Elephant Deaths In The World

ets a lot of destruction and death. A JCB dozer is burying the dead body of an elephant in Habarana, Sri Lanka, on May 20, 2023. The Sri Lankan wild elephant, scientifically known as Elephas maximus maximus, is reported to have over 7,000 across the country. Humans have been clearing forests and building settlements, leading to the loss of elephants' habitats and frequent visits to elephant villages, resulting in an elephant-human conflict. In 2022, 433 elephant deaths and 145 human deaths will have been reported due to this problem. From January 1 to April 25, 2023, 114 elephant deaths have been reported, with 34 from Anuradhapura district, 29 from Polonnaruwa district, and 19 from Eastern Province. In 2023, 36 people will have died due to the conflict. Sri Lankans have been taming and using wild elephants for cultural and religious activities since ancient times, and elephants have been used for war, such as when King Dutugemunu (101-77 BC) used an elephant named Kandula. Elephants are still widely used for Buddhist processions, such as the Kandy Dalada Perahera. They are also useful for the development of Sri Lanka's tourism industry, as many tourists come to see them and the country receives a lot of foreign exchange from visitors to the parks in different provinces. However, the human-elephant conflict causes a lot of destruction and death.