Elephants in my Backyard
A case of human-elephant conflict and mitigation in the Indian subcontinent
The Asiatic elephants (Elephas Maximus) were domesticated around 8000BC as can be understood from Indus Valley seals. Their sheer strength, virility, patience and empathy, saw their purpose in military, economy, transportation and philosophy. An animal of the royal decree, they prevented Alexander’s army from crossing the river to reach the Indian mainland. They have been mentioned in Arthashastra (one of the main treatises on social, economic and political edicts) and Jatakas tales in Buddhist scriptures crowning them as one of the seven gems of the universe. Their use in the Indian subcontinent and public sphere was mainstreamed around 600bc as can be inferred from Gaja Shastra- the science of capturing and taming elephants. As the knowledge of god(s) is a cultural phenomenon, the animal was exemplified as a deity (or their carrier) in all religions originating in the subcontinent and became emblematic of prosperity and wisdom.
Environmentally, the elephant is a keystone species. Herds of elephants, break down dense forest cover to bring in sunlight and create a corridor for the movement of other animals. They dig the surface of watering holes with their tusks and increase their carrying capacity. They uproot old trees, so newer flora can take shape. Their feces contribute to brownfield development. Elephants are an active participant in forest ecosystems.
Historically, elephants have been exploited for economic benefits are tortured for warfare. With time and development, as their purpose as an active contributor in public life and production decreased, their role for ritualistic and ceremonial roles remained. They are worshipped during festivals in temples of south India and until, 2008, were inducted as a part of the Republic Day parade, when an elephant with the children it was carrying ran amuck, after witnessing a mammoth crowd in its wake. The wildlife act of 1972, which granted it a status of protected species, on one side, prevented poaching (for their tusks); on the other side, marginalized all communities that had elephants domesticated and created a deadlock for communities living alongside the forests. Local NGOs and activists have long opposed the still existing presence of the human-elephant relationship neglecting the long-term repercussions; this has led to the polarisation of government policies and social behavior and has been detrimental to the general outlook towards elephants, who have been reduced to a status of wild animals.
One such relationship that has borne the brunt of this fire is the mahout community. Elephants are social animals, with a sound memory, result in a large hippocampus. They feel tormented when left alone. Their ability to understand multiple languages and reserved nature, saw a cultural role being designated to serve as an interlocutor between the society and the elephant — the mahout. A mahout is the man that tames the elephant, develops an understanding and working language with it, and tends to its needs. It acts as a point of contact for other humans and a trust bank for the elephant. Considering an elephant lives up to 80years and forms a deep relationship with the mahout, it sees itself bonding with three generations of the same family. It is estimated that over 600 mahouts are spread out over various parts of India, presiding over the fringes of the dense urban fabric. The elephant although, rare now, is still a part of the public memory in Indian cities, this relationship serving as a spectacle for purposes of tourism and inter-species relationship. Once a respected rank directly under the patronage of palaces, these people and their elephants now usually lives in slums or Kuchha houses, having no development model or spatial agency being deployed to shelter their needs and also maintain a social balance with the elephant as the locus or the leverage of their association within the community and beyond.
One such community has presided on the outskirts of Jaipur. Some 130 elephants and their mahouts, that trace their roots back to the Mughal era, live in makeshift homes. They were brought here to serve as Royal rides. Elephants are usually found in the western ghats, south and east India, in tropical climates. The arid climate of the area is not conducive to the health of these mammals, adding to their plight. The community is predominantly Muslim, and earn up to 6000rs per month by ferrying tourists at the amber fort. Hathigaon, by Rahul Mehrotra, a lone rider in its typology, undertaken by any architect anywhere, and only the third elephant village in the world was designed to serve over hundred elephants. Repurposing an abandoned quarry site, incremental housing was constructed, with dense plantation to create a watering hole that will produce an amicable environment. Additionally, an interpretation center and veterinary facility were planned, but the initiative was never undertaken by the government. Poor defensibility of site and maintenance issues have put the site in a decrepit state. But the sense inculcated by the architect in the design sustains the relationship of the mahout and his elephant for the time being.
This relationship in rural India has been souring.
Changing demographics and increasing population has seen ever greater penetration into the Indian forests and consumption of forest cover for resources, and agriculture. This has put villages in proximity to herds of elephants that are extremely territorial. Reduced forest cover and depleting corridors, reduce the food reserve for these herds that rampage farms for their dietary needs. Government ex gratis doesn’t prove enough to relieve the plight of these villagers as rogue elephants often cause casualties. Elephants also suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)and having witnessed a family member being killed at the hands of humans at a young age, develop a feeling of revenge. Poaching has also crippled the patriarchal society and reduced the herd size from 80 to almost 30 making them volatile as a whole. Decreased sensitivity and absence of skilled ‘interlocutors’ sees this conflict turn into a turf war, causing more than one casualty per day for humans and over 60 per year for the elephant community. This social conflict has become common in South Asia and Africa, to be given its own term — human-elephant conflict or H.E.C.
These statistics are a little better in the Periyar sanctuary in south India, where an elephant rehabilitation center in Kottur has vastly helped in mitigating rogue and abandoned elephants. Serving up to 30 elephants, the site is trenches to protect it from encroachment from other herds. Mahouts here are provided jobs under the careful management of zoologists and naturalists, that help greatly in maintaining the balance between young orphaned elephants suffering from Ptsd and old elephants. During the daytime, this relationship is seen during the bathing time of elephants where the mahouts carefully clean and cool their elephants for hours. The site is open to visitors who generally come to witness this social activity and their perception greatly benefits from it. It also helps in generating revenue for the site, thereby proposing an alternate socio-economic construct for this society.
Through the essay, we have tried to highlight the interspecies relationship that exists at the friends of human society. Human-elephant conflict is a common phenomenon and draws huge attention for elephants who are equally competitive and able in securing their lands. What exists in a threshold that is carefully safeguarded by this cultural spectacle that finds its future in dismay. What is required is the exploration of the spatial qualities and shortcomings of both the projects and how they propose two different constructs of this relationship to serve as a model for the development of villages and mitigation of man and elephant along sensitive corridors. We need to draw on the relationship of man and other species and its relevance in the Indian public sphere, by carefully interpreting the social and architectural diaspora involving the relationship between the mahout and the elephant.
Co-Author: Anisha Suri
