Parliament Question: Human-Animal Conflicts and Measures for Wildlife Protection

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2367 TO BE ANSWERED ON 03.08.2026 Human-Animal Conflicts and Measures for Wildlife Protection 2367. DR. MOHAMMAD JAWED: Will the Minister of ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE be pleased to state: (a) whether the Government has taken note of the increasing incidents of human-animal conflict across the country due to shrinking forests, habitat fragmentation and developmental activities; (b) if so, the data on human casualties and wild animal deaths resulting from such conflicts during the last five years, State/UT and year-wise; (c) whether the Government is considering the creation or expansion of buffer zones, wildlife corridors and other conservation measures to reduce human-animal conflict and protect forest habitats; and (d) if so, the details thereof including the States identified, proposed measures, timeline for implementation and funds allocated and if not, the reasons therefor? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, FOREST AND CLIMATE CHANGE (SHRI KIRTI VARDHAN SINGH) (a) & (b) Human–wildlife conflict may be attributed to population growth, expansion of human settlements and development projects into wildlife habitats and corridors, and increased wildlife populations resulting from sustained conservation efforts. The situation is aggravated by changing cropping patterns, the presence of stray cattle and dogs near forest fringes, habitat fragmentation and degradation, depletion of natural prey, and dependence on forest resources for grazing, fuelwood, fodder and other livelihood needs. The management of wildlife including mitigation of human-animal conflicts is primarily the responsibility of the concerned State Government/Union Territory Administration who are the first responders to any conflict situation. As per available reports in the Ministry, the details of human deaths due to attack by tigers and elephants during the last five years in various states are given at Annexure-I and Annexure-II. (c) & (d) The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and the Wildlife Institute of India, in accordance with Section 38O (1) (g) of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972,have notified 32 major tiger corridors in the country. The NTCA Guidelines (2012) and Standard Operating Procedures guide tiger and habitat management. Similarly, the Ministry has also identified 150 elephant corridors in the country in 2023. The Ministry along with the State Governments and UT administrations have prepared landscape specific Regional Action Plan to address the long term conservation and management of elephants in the contiguous landscape. *****Annexure –I Annexure referred to in reply to part (a) and (b) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 2367 due for reply on 03.08.2026 regarding “Human-Animal Conflicts and Measures for Wildlife Protection”. The details of human deaths during the last five years due to tiger attacks, year-wise and State- wise S. No. State 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 1 Assam 0 0 0 4 0 2 Bihar 1 9 1 2 4 3 Chhattisgarh 0 0 3 0 1 4 Jharkhand 0 0 0 0 0 5 Karnataka 0 1 8 2 0 6 Kerala 2 1 1 1 2 7 Madhya Pradesh 11 3 10 6 9 8 Maharashtra 25 80 37 41 48 9 Mizoram 0 0 0 0 0 10 Odisha 0 0 0 0 0 11 Rajasthan 0 0 2 1 3 12 Tamil Nadu 1 0 1 0 0 13 Telangana 2 0 0 1 0 14 Uttar Pradesh 4 11 25 10 2 15 Uttarakhand 0 3 0 5 2 16 West Bengal 5 1 0 1 0 Total 51 109 88 74 71Annexure –II Annexure referred to in reply to part (a) and (b) of the Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 2367 due for reply on 03.08.2026 regarding “Human-Animal Conflicts and Measures for Wildlife Protection”. The details of human deaths during the last five years due to elephant attacks, year-wise and State-wise S. No. State 2020-21 2021-22 2022-23 2023-24 2024-25 1 Andhra Pradesh 6 4 5 6 11 2 Arunachal Pradesh 2 2 0 0 1 3 Assam 91 63 80 74 119 4 Chhattisgarh 42 64 69 51 53 5 Jharkhand 74 133 96 87 81 6 Karnataka 26 27 29 48 36 7 Kerala 20 25 22 23 19 8 Maharashtra 0 0 2 5 4 9 Meghalaya 6 3 3 7 12 10 Nagaland 0 0 1 1 0 11 Odisha 93 112 148 154 143 12 Tamil Nadu 57 37 43 61 52 13 Tripura 1 2 2 1 1 14 Uttar Pradesh 1 0 4 4 3 15 Uttarakhand 13 12 4 8 10 16 West Bengal 47 77 97 99 79 Total 479 561 605 629 624