People from different walks of life in Chattogram have demanded amendments to the Wildlife (Conservation and Security) Act 2012 to protect the endangered Asian elephant.

The demand was made at a human chain held in front of the Chattogram Press Club at 12.30pm on Saturday, 26 December. Speakers called for action to stop the continued killing of wild elephants in Chattogram and Cox's Bazar, and for the killers to be arrested and given exemplary punishment.

The human chain, held under the banner of "Pran-Prakriti Surokkhay Sammilito Andolon", was joined by teachers from various universities in Chattogram, writers, intellectuals, poets, artists, environmentalists and leaders of social and professional organisations.

The organisers said about 22 wild elephants had died in the country in the past year, four of them this month. Speakers alleged that most had been killed deliberately.

They said there were allegations in the media and on social media that the dead elephants had been brutally killed by shooting, poisoning and electric shocks. If elephants continued to be killed and to die in this way, the animal could soon disappear from Bangladesh. Elephant conservation had to be treated as a priority, the effectiveness of existing conservation initiatives reviewed impartially and, where needed, the conservation programme overhauled.

Citing the latest elephant survey, carried out in 2016 by the Bangladesh Forest Department and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the organisers said the country had 268 wild Asian elephants, while 93 migratory elephants moved through five border forests. There were also 100 captive elephants kept with government permission. But these numbers are now falling as deaths increase.

The speakers put forward five demands for elephant conservation:

• To stop the continued killing of wild elephants in Chattogram and Cox's Bazar, identify and arrest the killers and ensure exemplary punishment.
• Ensure elephants' safety, including by protecting their natural corridors and the natural water sources deep in the forests, and ensure an adequate food chain in sanctuaries and forests.
• Investigate whether there were failures or negligence of duty in protecting wildlife and elephants and, in line with the announcement of the Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, ensure disciplinary action against officials and staff who failed.
• Amend the Wildlife (Conservation and Security) Act 2012 to end the commercial use of elephants permanently.
• Properly enforce the wildlife conservation law and the animal welfare law.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.