India on Thursday reaffirmed its commitment to elephant conservation with a focus on technology, habitat protection, community participation and coordinated efforts to address human-elephant conflict (HEC) as the national celebrations of World Elephant Day 2026 were held in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh.
Union Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Kirti Vardhan Singh presided over the celebrations, while Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister K. Pawan Kalyan attended as the Guest of Honour.
Speaking at the event, Singh said India’s commitment to elephant conservation was not merely a policy choice but a reflection of the country’s civilisational values and ecological responsibility. He said the government was combining technologies such as artificial intelligence, remote sensing and geospatial mapping with traditional knowledge to protect elephant habitats.
India has 33 Elephant Reserves and 150 scientifically identified elephant corridors and is home to nearly 60% of the world’s wild Asian elephant population, Singh said. He stressed that human-elephant conflict is a complex issue requiring coordinated action involving multiple stakeholders and the use of scientifically validated ground-level data.
‘Conflict to Coexistence’ approach in Andhra Pradesh
Kalyan said the Andhra Pradesh government’s approach to human-elephant conflict is guided by the motto “Conflict to Coexistence”, with the issue being treated as a shared responsibility that extends beyond administrative boundaries.
He highlighted the state’s H.A.N.U.M.A.N. (Healing And Nurturing Units for Monitoring, Aid and Nursing of Wildlife) initiative and said Andhra Pradesh was using modern technology, community participation and capacity building of frontline forest staff to strengthen wildlife protection.
Gaj Gaurav Awards 2026 presented
As part of the celebrations, Singh conferred the Gaj Gaurav Awards 2026 on individuals for their exemplary contributions to elephant conservation and management.
The event also witnessed the release of “30 Giant Steps”, documenting 30 major milestones, achievements and conservation initiatives undertaken under Project Elephant between 2020 and 2026.
Launched in 1992 as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, Project Elephant has completed more than three decades of efforts aimed at protecting elephants, their habitats and corridors, mitigating human-elephant conflict and ensuring the welfare of captive elephants.
Rs 500 crore regional action plan for southern India
A Regional Action Plan for Comprehensive Understanding and Management of Human-Elephant Conflict in Southern India covering Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu was also released.
Prepared in consultation with southern elephant-range states, scientific institutions and experts, the plan adopts a landscape-level approach to tackling human-elephant conflict. The Rs 500-crore Government of India support will focus on habitat connectivity, corridor conservation, early-warning systems, conflict mitigation infrastructure, habitat restoration and community participation.
The plan also provides for research and monitoring, rapid-response mechanisms, capacity building and stronger coordination between states.
A special issue of the Journal of Wildlife Science commemorating three decades of elephant conservation in India was released during the event. A monograph titled “Asian Elephants in Central India Before 1947”, documenting the historical distribution, status and human-elephant interface in Central India, was also launched.
23rd Project Elephant Steering Committee meeting held
The 23rd Steering Committee Meeting of Project Elephant, chaired by Singh, was also held in Visakhapatnam. The meeting reviewed key issues related to elephant conservation and management.
Several initiatives and publications were released, including The Trumpet Volume VI Issue 01, the Model Elephant Conservation Plan for the Nilgiri Elephant Reserve, Captive Elephant Husbandry: Science, Welfare and Practice and Phase II of the human-elephant conflict study covering Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Odisha and West Bengal.
Focus on science-based conflict mitigation
A workshop on “Human-Elephant Conflict: Varying Scenarios Across India” brought together regulatory authorities, scientific institutions and field agencies from elephant-range states.
The discussions examined regional trends in HEC and focused on measures including veterinary interventions, prevention of electrocution and railway-related elephant deaths, habitat and corridor management and integrated landscape-level approaches.
The workshop also stressed greater coordination among the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, state forest departments, research institutions, Indian Railways and other stakeholders.
Awareness campaign reaches over 20 lakh students
As part of nationwide World Elephant Day celebrations, Project Elephant, in collaboration with the National Museum of Natural History, organised an awareness campaign involving more than 20 lakh students from 21,450 schools.
Painting and mask-making competitions, rallies, street plays, awareness programmes and pledge-taking ceremonies were organised to highlight the ecological and cultural importance of elephants and the need to protect their habitats.
The celebrations in Visakhapatnam underscored India’s approach of combining science and technology, habitat and corridor conservation, community participation and inter-state coordination to strengthen elephant conservation and promote coexistence between people and elephants.
