Editorial photo #10063344 Disaster and Accident

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

conflict is increasing day by day in Sri Lanka. The Wildlife Department is reporting that over 7,000 elephants are being affected by human-caused habitat destruction in Sri Lanka, and that in 2022, 433 elephant deaths and 145 human deaths will have been reported due to the resulting elephant-human conflict. From January 1 to April 25, 2023, 114 elephant deaths have been reported, with 34 reported 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 by man since the days of the kings of Sri Lanka, through the Portuguese and Dutch eras, and up to the present day. Elephants are still being used for Buddhist processions, such as the Kandy Dalada Perahera, and are also useful for the development of Sri Lanka's tourism industry, as many tourists come to Sri Lanka to see them. However, the human-elephant conflict is continuing to increase, and on May 20, 2023, the dead body of an elephant was lifted and buried by a JCB dozer in Habarana, Sri Lanka.