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

¶ 01 Hon. Deputy Speaker, the answer is as follows.

¶ 02 (a) (i) A regional distribution of human deaths from 2015 to 2024 is provided in Annex I.

¶ 03 Summary: - Elephant deaths: 2015–2019: 1,468; 2020–2024: 2,011. Elephant deaths have increased in 2020–2024 relative to 2015–2019. - Human deaths: 2015–2019: 456; 2020–2024: 734. Human deaths have also increased in 2020–2024.

¶ 04 (ii) Detailed measures are set out in Annex II. Key actions to minimize the human-elephant conflict include: - Construction of 5,612 km of electric fencing to reduce crop, property and life damage caused by wild elephants; during 2024, 588 km were constructed across the Southern, Uva, Eastern, Central, North Western, Trincomalee, Anuradhapura, Vavuniya, Kilinochchi and Polonnaruwa wildlife regions. - Deployment of 4,005 Civil Security personnel for maintenance and protection of existing electric fences. - Establishment of outposts and deployment of 737 Civil Security personnel to drive away elephants from high-risk areas. - Recruitment of 3,647 multipurpose development society members to the Department of Wildlife Conservation to support round-the-clock fence maintenance and protection. - Annual procurement and distribution of 20,000 elephant crackers for daily elephant driving operations (expenditure: Rs. 350 million). - Compensation payments for loss of life and property: Rs. 380 million in 2023 and Rs. 372 million in 2024 (to date). - Scientific research using GPS collars to understand elephant movement patterns and application of findings in project areas. - Identification and removal of individual problem elephants where necessary. - Identification of 16 elephant corridors: 3 located within declared wildlife reserves of the Department of Wildlife Conservation, 10 within other declared reserves, and 3 within areas under the Mahaweli Authority; steps are being taken to gazette these corridors where required. - Since 2023, implementation of zonal-level management practices to reduce human fatalities, including household-level awareness with villagers, Grama Niladharis, Divisional Secretaries and relevant local authorities; clearing undergrowth along elephant paths and installing street lamps at dark points on crossing routes. - Habitat enrichment in 2023–2024, including removal of invasive shrubs, roadside undergrowth clearing, and water source improvements (area figures provided in the annex). - Trialling new technologies: locally-produced energizers (projects in Udawalawe, Ampara, Puttalam); ultrasonic devices (Ampara, Galgamuwa, Polonnaruwa) to deter elephants and prevent village entry; drones with the Navy and Air Force to drive elephants (Puttalam, Anuradhapura, Southern regions); bee-sound-based deterrents (Maduru Oya, Ampara); chilli-based deterrents in pilot villages; use of smoke from burning mixed oils; and laying spiked rubber mats at identified fence-breaching points in Udawalawe National Park.

¶ 05 In short, we are pursuing both short-term and long-term measures, including fencing, elephant crackers, vegetation management, lighting, movement-pattern research, corridor management and other methods under study.

¶ 06 (b) Does not arise.