Kathmandu, August 11 - Elephants entering Nepal from neighboring India have increasingly begun staying in Nepali territory for longer periods, contributing to a rise in human-elephant conflict across the country, particularly in the eastern Tarai.
Although Nepal’s native wild elephant population is estimated at around 320, the number of elephants currently roaming within Nepal has reportedly exceeded 450. Wildlife experts say that many of these elephants are seasonal migrants from India, but a growing number have not returned across the border, resulting in more frequent encounters with local communities.
The eastern Tarai remains the area most severely affected by wild elephants. According to available data, 80 people have lost their lives in elephant-related incidents over the past 16 years, while 16 elephants have died during the same period in the region.
Districts including Jhapa, Morang, Sunsari, Saptari, Udayapur, and Sindhuli have experienced repeated crop damage, destruction of property, and threats to human safety caused by elephants moving from Indian territory into Nepal.
Elephant expert Dr. Ashok Kumar Ram said that herds originating from Mahananda Wildlife Sanctuary in India, located about 150 kilometers from the Mechi River, enter Nepal through the Bahundangi area of Jhapa and have been responsible for significant damage in eastern Nepal.
Dr. Ram stated that, across Nepal, 357 people have died in elephant attacks, while 57 elephants have died during the same period. The herds entering through eastern Nepal have been observed roaming as far west as Sarlahi.
According to experts, these elephants traditionally moved between India and Nepal on a seasonal basis. However, increasing habitat pressure, human disturbance, and other ecological challenges in India have altered their movement patterns, leading some herds to remain in Nepal for extended periods and effectively become resident elephants.
Conservationists emphasize that the situation highlights the urgent need for strengthened transboundary cooperation between Nepal and India, improved habitat management, wildlife corridors, early warning systems, and community-based measures to reduce conflict and protect both people and elephants.
Human-elephant conflict has emerged as one of the most pressing wildlife conservation and rural livelihood challenges in Nepal’s Tarai region, where expanding settlements and agricultural land increasingly overlap with traditional elephant movement routes.
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