India: Securing Animals' Food Sources Reduces Conflict with Humans

Jan 26, 2026 | Aditya Pandey and Sudeshna Chowdhury
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In India’s north‑eastern state of Assam, growing human‑elephant conflict is revealing how fragile food security and shrinking habitats affect both people and wildlife. As forests are cleared for farming, infrastructure and mining, elephants are increasingly pushed into villages, leading to tensions with the local population.

For elephants the risks are huge, with some animals being electrocuted by low-hanging power lines, hit by fast-moving trains or poisoned by farmers angry that the elephants are eating their crops. Assam has lost around 1,200 elephants in 25 years, many due to human activity. A local initiative called Hati Bondhu (Friends of Elephants) is offering a different approach to ease the tensions – with success.