A section of environmental activists has voiced concern over the forest department’s plans to construct an ‘ultra modern Elephant Conservation and Environmental Centre’ in the core area of the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) in The Nilgiris.

The estimated ₹35 crore project is being designed to upgrade the more than century-old Theppakadu Elephant Camp that houses 27 camp elephants. However, conservationists have voiced their concerns over the impact the project would have on the tiger reserve and the wildlife that surrounds the Theppakadu Elephant Camp, which is where the construction is to take place.

Officials from the State forest department said the upgradation of the facilities are to take place in all the three blocks of the camp including the elephant camp, the cafeteria which sits across the camp along the Moyar River and the visitor interpretation centre. They added no new buildings would be added and the built-up area would remain the same.

‘Crossing-point’ for wild elephants

Conservationists, however, contend the location is a crucial “crossing-point” for wild elephants looking to cross the Moyar River, and is vital for habitat contiguity in the region. The conservationists had previously opposed the construction of a ‘township’ for the families of 44 mahouts at the camp, arguing it would sever important elephant movement pathways.

Construction in core area of tiger reserve

Conservation biologist and member of the National Board for Wildlife, Priya Davidar, said she has “strong misgivings” about the current project as it involves construction in the core area of a tiger reserve and crucial elephant habitat. “Basically, it's inadvisable to have any construction activities take place in the core area of a tiger reserve,” she said.

Activists also claim the facilities are being constructed to draw more visitors to the tiger reserve, with footfall witnessing steady increase over the last few years, following the release of a documentary film centring around the lives of two mahouts at the elephant camp. “More facilities will mean that more people will visit and further increase the pressures on a tiger reserve that is already struggling to mitigate the effects of rampant tourism,” said a senior Tamil Nadu-based conservationist.

Landscape ecologist, Jean-Philippe Puyravaud, said Theppakadu was in the core area of the best elephant habitat in southern India. “This being the case, you cannot keep building or upgrading structures when the need is to move tourism to the buffer zones or outside the tiger reserve entirely,” he said.

Mr. Puyravaud said recent research suggests valleys and rivers serve as important pathways to ensure genetic flow between elephant populations and construction along these areas could lead to elephants not being able to access these areas.

According to officials, barriers are also part of the proposal to keep the elephant camp protected and secure, which activists argue will further limit movement of wildlife.

‘No new facilities’

When contacted, a top state forest department official said, “no new facilities” would be created as part of the project. He argued the elephant camp was not an area for eco-tourism but an education and awareness centre where people learn about the functioning of elephant camps and their roles in conflict mitigation. “This elephant camp is over 100 years old, and there is a need to upgrade the facilities to keep pace with the tourist inflow and pressures that arise from it,” he said, adding that no Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) has yet been completed or sanctioned for the project.

However, conservationist K. Mohanraj said the concept of elephant camps serving any beneficial role to conservation itself was outdated. “If you see the impacts around the camp, you can see that a large amount of canopy has disappeared around Anaimalai and Theppakadu due to the camp elephants needing to be fed. This results in lesser availability of fodder for wild elephants, which already face other pressures such as limited food availability due to invasive species and habitat loss,” he added.

He said instead of building more infrastructure within elephant camps, they should be moved outside tiger reserves to lessen the impacts of tourism and also the impact the camps themselves have on the surrounding ecology.