Bhubaneswar: As many as 799 people lost their lives and 1962 people sustained injuries in the human-wildlife conflicts in the past five years in Odisha.
This has been informed by Forest and Environment Minister Ganesh Ram Khuntia in the Assembly on Tuesday.
Responding to a query from MLA Padmalochan Panda, the Minister said that most incidents involved elephants straying into villages in search of food, leading to crop loss, property damage, and human casualties.
Dhenkanal has been the worst affected district, recording 147 deaths. Frequent elephant movement in the area is attributed to habitat loss and shrinking forest cover, forcing the animals into human settlements. Rapid urbanization and deforestation have further intensified these conflicts.
Odisha also witnessed 832 wildlife deaths, including elephants and tigers. Shockingly, 806 of these were due to poaching, highlighting the ongoing threats of illegal hunting and wildlife trafficking despite conservation efforts, the Minister said.