WII-UKFD2025-09-242022https://digitalrepository.wii.gov.in/handle/123456789/14091. The Rajaji Landscape comprising of the Rajaji Tiger Reserve, and the adjoining Forest Divisions of Dehradun, Haridwar and Lansdowne in the state of Uttarakhand (henceforth, The Rajaji landscape) supports a population of about 550 elephants (Elephas maximus) as estimated by the Uttarakhand Forest Department during 201 5. Thus, the Raj aji landscape holds nearly 31% of the elephant population occurring in Uttarakhand. 2. The elephant population in Uttarakhand including that of the Rajaji landscape has been relatively stable and even witnessed marginal growth. However, with growing human population and associated impacts on elephant habitats such as increased resource demands and rapid expansion of physical infrastructure, there has been an increase in the human-elephant conflict (henceforth, HEC). Early detection of the problem and addressing its root causes would be an important conflict resolution strategy. 3. As part of the preemptive conflict management strategy in the Rajaji in landscape, a perspective plan has been envisaged. The overarching objective of the perspective plan is to synthesize available information on the existing HEC in the Rajaji landscape, draw broad inferences on the trends and patterns, and deliberate on different approaches that are appropriate for mitigating HEC. As HEC mitigation strategies are both short- and long -term, the perspective plan is drafted for a reasonably long period of 10 years spanning 2023 to 2033 . 4. The drafting of the perspective plan did not involve any primary background research. However, the plan was prepared using information available in the literature; existing data on elephant movement, home range and conflict collected as part of the WII -UKFD collaborative project (Nigam et al. 2022), and data obtained from the Project Elephant. Further to this, extensive field visits were carried out to corroborate on the important findings obtained from other studies. Furthermore, the plan also draws heavily on other policy documents as elaborated in the report. 5. As elucidated by the first steering committee report of the Project Elephant (Gajatame, 1993), conservation and management of elephants in the Rajaji landscape calls for harboring "viable elephant populations" Perspective Plan to Manage Human-Elephant Conflict in Raja); Landscape (2023 - 2033) in "viable elephant habitats". Often, human-elephant conflict and elephant habitat conditions are intricately linked. In areas where elephant habitat quality is optimal, intensity of human-elephant conflict in the landscape would be comparatively low. Considering this, the perspective plan places emphasis on improving habitat conditions for elephants. 6. It has been observed that owing to adequate protection and voluntary relocation of Van Gujjars from the National Park areas, it is certain that habitat quality from wild life point of view had improved in select areas within Rajaji National Park. However, the highly productive critical ecotone habitats (located in the eco-tone of Bhabar and Terai tracts) in Shyampur and Chidiyapur Forest Ranges of Haridwar Forest Division have suffered major habitat degradation owing to Gujjar settlement in the area and corresponding resource extraction pressures. 7. While the forest cover did not change much in Rajaji Landscape during the period 1985 to 2022, the land-use outside forests have changed substantially. The urban built-up area in particular has mushroomed all around with long-term implications for elephant movement, dispersal and HEC management as well. Unlike in rural areas, Managing HEC in urban areas is far more challenging due to crowd factor. The potential of invoking provisions of Ecologically Sensitive Zone area under Environmental Protection Act, 1986 to disallow urban expansion close to forest boundary need to be explored. 8. Critical corridors like the Chilla - Motichur remained non-functional for a long period. This had resulted in isolation of elephant populations on either side of river Ganga with long-term effects on dispersal, migration and demography of elephants. Nevertheless, huge efforts were invested by the Uttarakhand Forest Department due to which the Chilla - Motichur corridor has been mostly restored. The other critical corridors like the Motichur - Gohri corridor along the Song River would require renewed focus so that this vital corridor can be recovered on time. The Rajaji landscape had also lost a corridor that connected Ramgarh range of the National Park with the Lacchiwala range of the Dehradun Forest Division across Susua river near Dudhli. This was lost largely due to lack of focus as the corridor was not recognized. 9. In the Rajaji Landscape, the natural grasslands along the river Ganga had either been lost (due to human occupation) or degraded. While it would be impossible to recover the once expansive and productive 2 Perspective Plan to Manage Human- elephant Conflict in Rajaji Landscape (2023 - 2033) grasslands along Ganga, it certainly is critical to restore Chilla, Kunaon, and Dassowala grasslands for elephants. Riverine grasslands were important dry-season habitats for elephants in the past. Recovering critical grasslands and restoring their quality would enhance the inherent carrying capacity of Rajaji Landscape to support elephants. Addressing human-elephant conflict in Rajaji Landscape would also be dependent on recovering and restoring habitat in Shyampur and Chidiyapur Forest Ranges. 10. Linear infrastructure expansion including upgradation of existing village roads and district roads in addition to the Highways and concurrent with rapid increase in the vehicular traffic along these roads pose a major long-term threat of habitat fragmentation. Implementing ecofriendly green infrastructure by ensuring habitat permeability would be critical in the Rajaji Landscape to prevent isolation of elephant populations. Isolated elephant populations are predisposed to cause high levels of human-elephant conflict. 11. Physical barriers that separate elephants and people along the forest interface would be crucial to achieve co-existence in the landscape. Without physical barriers at strategic locations, addressing elephant conflict would be difficult. The barriers currently built by the Forest Department along the forest-agriculture interface pose no threat to habitat connectivity. Limitations and opportunities of implementing physical barriers have been elaborated in the report 12. There are 77 places of religious worship inside Rajaji Landscape that draws over 10000 pilgrims every year. Places of religious worship are located in 18 (58%) ranges of 5 (83%) Forest Divis ions in the Rajaji Landscape. While religious tourism has the potential to reinforce cultural underpinnings of nature conservation as practiced in India besides enabling public appreciation of nature, unregulated pilgrimage in wildlife habitats can pose a challenge to elephant conservation as elephants can abandon habitats with chronic biotic pressure resulting in surfacing of human-elephant conflict. Measures to minimize the threats posed by places of religious worship are deliberated. 13. Further, solutions for the sites used for Kumbh mela for festival related activities were also used extensively by elephants as detailed in the report. Hitherto, the temple committees and other religious institutions have not proactively engaged with the forest department in regulating pilgrims and maintaining the integrity of local ecology. Forest Perspective Plan co Manage Human-Elephant Conflict in Rajaji Landscape (2023 - 2033) department with lean headcount of staff cannot be expected to regulate pilgrims and their activities. Given the huge biotic imprint of places of religious workshop on wildlife habitats in Rajaji Landscape, the perspective plan favors vesting substantial responsibility and sharing of resources by committees of the religious worship to maintain the integrity of forests as envisaged by NTCA guidelines issued during 2012. 14. The indiscriminate use of forest roads and trails by tourists visiting places of religious worship poses a huge risk of fatal encounters with wildlife. The situation calls for regulating/restricting use of forest roads and trails by tourists. There are also instances of forest trails being used as roads by clearing vegetation, which need to be curtailed. 15. Finally, the perspective plan favors active dialogue, and engagement with the communities of the Van Gujjars that live alongside elephant habitats. Partnering with local communities and involving them in implementing conflict mitigation strategies would improve the efficacy of the current efforts of Uttarakhand Forest Department.enHuman elephant conflictRajaji landscapeHabitatLand useLand cover changesMitigation measuresManagementUttarakhandTechnical Report