India's Elephant Conservation Framework and Population Status
India hosts nearly 60% of the world's wild Asian elephant population, with the Synchronous All India Population Estimation of Elephants (SAIEE) 2021–25 estimating the population at 22,446 individuals. These elephants are protected across 33 Elephant Reserves spanning 80,777 km² across 14 major elephant-range states, representing an expansion of 8,610 km² since 2014. The conservation effort is coordinated through Project Elephant, the Government of India's flagship initiative implemented by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), which provides financial and technical support to states for habitat protection, captive elephant conservation, and human-elephant conflict mitigation.
Scientific Monitoring and Corridor Conservation
The SAIEE 2021–25 employed India's first DNA-based synchronized elephant census, analyzing dung samples to identify individual elephants through unique genetic fingerprints. This scientific approach combined DNA profiling, block counts, and line-transect surveys to improve population assessment accuracy. The country has identified and validated 150 elephant corridors across 14 states, with regional distribution showing 52 corridors in East-Central region, 48 in North-East, 32 in Southern, and 18 in Northern regions. West Bengal contains the highest number with 26 corridors (17% of national total), including 19 inter-state corridors and 6 transboundary corridors connecting India and Nepal. Monitoring data reveals increased elephant usage in 59 corridors (40%), stable use in 29 corridors (19%), declining use in 29 corridors (19%), and impaired conditions in 15 corridors.
Infrastructure Safety and Conflict Mitigation Measures
The government has implemented significant railway safety measures, conducting joint surveys of 127 sensitive railway stretches spanning 3,452.4 km. Seventy-seven stretches across 14 states, covering 1,965.2 km, have been recommended for mitigation measures involving 705 structures including underpasses, overpasses, ramps, level crossings, and bridge modifications. These efforts are complemented by AI-enabled Distributed Acoustic Sensing systems, optical-fiber-based intrusion detection, seismic sensors, and thermal cameras that provide real-time alerts to loco pilots, station masters, and control rooms. These interventions have reduced train-hit elephant deaths from 26 in 2013 to 12 in 2024, representing a decline of over 50%.
Captive Elephant Management and Community Support
The Captive Elephant (Transfer or Transport) Rules, 2024 regulate the movement of captive elephants, with a High-Powered Committee examining interstate transfers as constituted under the Supreme Court's order dated March 3, 2023. The Gajah Suchana mobile application maintains a national genetic database containing DNA profiles, morphological characteristics, and ownership details of every registered captive elephant. For human-elephant conflict management, the government provides ex-gratia assistance under Centrally Sponsored Schemes including ₹10 lakh for death or permanent incapacitation, ₹2 lakh for grievous injury, treatment costs up to ₹25,000 for minor injuries, and compensation for crop and property losses as per state and UT norms. The Human-Wildlife Conflict Advisory recommends hotspot mapping, rapid response teams, and state and district-level review committees for improved coordination.
Institutional Framework and Regional Planning
The Management Effectiveness Evaluation framework for Elephant Reserves was launched in 2023 and tested in four representative reserves—Shivalik, Kaziranga–Karbi Anglong, Mayurbhanj and Nilgiri—with plans to expand it nationwide supported through CAMPA funding. The ministry has developed Regional Action Plans for all elephant-bearing regions, recognizing that elephants range across state boundaries and require coordinated action across jurisdictions for habitat connectivity and conflict mitigation. These sustained efforts reflect the Government of India's comprehensive approach combining traditional conservation values with modern science and technology to secure the future of Asian elephants in India.