The Hon. (Dr.) Dammika Patabendi - Minister of Environment

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Speaker, the Reply to the Hon. Leader of the Opposition’s Question under SO 27(2) is as follows.

¶ 02 1. The most recent elephant survey was conducted on 17, 18 and 19 August 2024. Scientific analysis is ongoing; therefore, data cannot be released at this moment but will be presented in due course. The latest available nationwide survey is from 2011, which reported at least 5,879 elephants alive.

¶ 03 Breakdown from 2011 observations: - Adults (age >15 years): 1,042; of which adult males: 55 (5.28%) - Subadults (age >10 years): 453; of which subadult males: 35 (7.73%) - Calves (age up to 5 years): 382; of which tusker calves: 32 (8.38%)

¶ 04 2. On the 2020 National Action Plan (NAP) to mitigate HEC introduced during the period of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa: A committee appointed by the Presidential Secretariat prepared the NAP identifying short-, medium-, and long-term actions. A summary of ongoing and planned activities is provided in Annex 01 (Placed in the Library).

¶ 05 3. With structured implementation, an estimated period of about three years would be required for effective rollout.

¶ 06 Participating agencies include: - Ministry of Environment - Ministry of Irrigation, Agriculture and National Livestock Resources Development - Ministry of Public Administration, Provincial Councils and Local Government - Ministry of Defence - Department of Wildlife Conservation - Forest Department - Department of Irrigation - Department of Agriculture - National Livestock Development Board - Civil Security Department - Sri Lanka Police - District and Divisional Secretaries in affected areas - Mahaweli Authority of Sri Lanka

¶ 07 4. HEC fatalities: - 2020: Humans 112; Elephants 328 - 2021: Humans 142; Elephants 375 - 2022: Humans 146; Elephants 439 - 2023: Humans 184; Elephants 488 - 2024: Humans 155; Elephants 388 From 2024 up to now (2025): Human deaths 73; elephant deaths 232.

¶ 08 5. Compensation: I. Human death: Rs. 1,000,000 II. Full disability: up to Rs. 1,000,000 III. Partial disability: up to Rs. 150,000 IV. Property damage: up to Rs. 200,000

¶ 09 6. Legal provisions: - Under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance (as amended by Acts No. 49 of 1993 and No. 22 of 2009), Part II prohibits hunting, shooting, killing, wounding, or capturing of elephants, including outside National Reserves (Section 12) and contrary to licence conditions (Section 22A), and prohibits use of electric devices or other means to injure wildlife. - Penalties: A fine not less than Rs. 150,000 and not exceeding Rs. 500,000 and/or imprisonment of not less than two years and not exceeding five years.

¶ 10 7. Animal Welfare Bill: We intend to appoint a committee to discuss with stakeholders, identify issues, and bring new proposals, with decisions to proceed accordingly.

¶ 11 8. Details of veterinarians and staff by wildlife region are provided in Annex 03 (Placed in the Library).

¶ 12 Additionally, there have been baseless accusations against the Department of Wildlife Conservation and its veterinarians for not treating elephants. We met them on 7 July to understand constraints. There are only 12 wildlife veterinarians for the entire country, treating all species under the Department’s mandate. Unlike other countries, they lack nurses, technical assistants, and trained mahouts/wildlife handlers. Between 10 and 15 July, they had to treat 13 gunshot elephants, with wounds to lower limbs suggesting a pattern. We have requested the CID to investigate the apparent organized use of illegal firearms in elephant shootings and any organized activity behind it. We have also initiated plans for a wildlife hospital and a mobile veterinary unit (estimated around Rs. 40 million).

¶ 13 We request the Opposition not to politicize elephants; they are a national treasure. This Government has reduced monthly elephant mortality compared to 2023 and recruited 3,551 electric fence attendants on 13 June this year. We are also expediting recruitment of veterinarians and have taken unprecedented conservation steps, including declaring forests as reserves.

¶ 14 Annexes 01, 02 and 03 tabled and placed in the Library.