Is Kerala’s wild elephant census accurate? Need a mobile app akin to ‘M Stripes’

Kochi: Is Kerala’s wild elephant population data accurate? The forest department itself is uncertain. This year’s census reports 1,793 wild elephants in Kerala, down from 1,920 in 2023. In contrast, the Union Forest Ministry's ‘Project Elephant Division’ recorded 5,706 elephants in 2017.

Asian elephants have a lifespan of 60 to 70 years. Therefore, it is difficult to believe that in a small state like Kerala, about 4000 wild elephants disappeared  within a span of six or seven years. According to the figures of the forest department, 845 elephants died between 2015 and 2023.

The argument that elephants lack boundaries and migrate to neighbouring states does not hold up, as there has been no corresponding increase in elephant numbers in these adjacent regions. Between 2017 and 2023, Karnataka saw an increase of 346 elephants, Tamil Nadu’s population grew by 200, and Andhra Pradesh experienced a rise of between 120 and 142 elephants.

The recommendation for the forest department is to develop a mobile application for more accurate tracking of elephant population. This app should be similar to the ‘M-stripes’ software used for tiger enumeration.

‘M Stripes’ was jointly developed by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and the Wildlife Institute of India. Data from the field is collected using GPS, General Packet Radio Services (GPRS)  and Remote Sensing to form a database and analysis is carried out using Geographic Information System (GIS). 

Forest patrollers' paths and the photos they collect will be geotagged and added to the database. Additionally, camera trap images will be analysed to count tigers. In contrast, the elephant census relies on observing elephant herds and recording the number of calves.