The state of Assam in northeast India has introduced a mobile app that warns the population of approaching herds of wild elephants in an effort to reduce violent encounters between humans and the land giants.
Clashes between humans and elephants are not uncommon in India and have increased in recent years. Elephants are becoming more aggressive as their habitats and natural corridors are reduced to make way for urban development.
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The app, called HaatiApp, was developed by Aaranyak, an Assam-based wildlife conservation society. It tracks the movements of wild elephant herds and alerts users when they come close to a collision.
Human-elephant conflicts in the state caused more than 200 elephant and 400 human deaths from 2017 to 2022, the organization reported.
“Due to a combination of population boom and poverty, humans have expanded their borders while the jungles for animals have had to shrink.”
The app also allows residents to report elephant sightings, injuries and deaths, as well as crop and property damage. It also includes a form that victims can use to request compensation from government agencies in Aaranyak.
“The application will act as an early warning system of the presence of wild elephants near human settlements and help villagers avoid negative encounters with wild elephants,” Aaranyak said in a Facebook post after the app’s launch this month.
Along with the launch of the app, Aaranyak also released a manual with information on using solar-powered fences to keep elephants away from people and property.
Assam is also known for its extensive agriculture and its numerous wildlife sanctuaries, which provide refuge to endangered animals such as the Asian elephant and the Indian rhinoceros.
With 5,700 animals, the state has the second largest elephant population in India, after the southwestern state of Karnataka, which has more than 6,000 elephants.
