Haathi Mere Sathi

Haathi Mere Saathi, Elephant Conservation and E-8 Countries

 

-Haathi Mere Saathi is a compaign launched by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) in partnership with the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) to improve conservation and welfare prospects of the elephant – India’s National Heritage Animal.

-The campaign was launched at the Elephant-8 Ministerial Meeting held in Delhi on 24 May 2011. The E-8 countries comprise of India, Botswana, the Republic of Congo, Indonesia, Kenya, Sri Lanka, Tanzania and Thailand.

-Mr. Jairam Ramesh during the address said that this public initiative was aimed at increasing awareness among people and developing not just friendship but also companionship between people and elephants.

-The campaign mascot, logo and website (www.haathimeresaathi.org) were also launched on the occasion.

-The Campaign focuses on various target audience groups including locals near elephant habitats, youth, policy makers, among others.

-It envisions setting up of Gajah centres in elephant landscapes across the country to spread awareness on their plight and invoke people’s participation in addressing the threats to them.

-It also plans to build capacity of protection and law enforcement agencies at the ground level, and advocate for policies favouring the pachyderms.

-In short, the campaign to ‘take Gajah (the elephant) to Prajah (the people)’ aims to spread awareness and encourage people’s participation in elephant conservation and welfare.

Elephant Conservation in India

-India had launched Project Elephant in 1992.

-Project Elephant provides financial support to elephant range states to manage protected areas, secure corridors and habitats, and address human-animal conflict.

-To give fresh impetus to the Project Elephant, the Elephant Task Force was constituted in Feb 2010.

-The ETF came out with the Gajah report in 2010, in which a major recommendation was to create a National Elephant Conservation Authority (NECA), along the lines of the National Tiger Conservation Authority.

-Among the other key recommendations was a framework to identify elephant landscapes that will get priority.

-In Oct 2010, India accorded the elephant the status of ‘National Heritage Animal’.

Elephant-8 Ministerial Meeting

The E-8 Ministerial Meeting represented regions with all three species of elephants, viz.

• Elephas maximus (Asian Elephant)
• Loxodonta africana (African Bush Elephant)
• Loxodonta cyclotis (African Forest Elephant)

-The participants included policy makers, conservationists, scientists, historians, art and culture experts among the participating countries.

-Discussions covered a wide range of issues categorised under three basic themes

1. Science and Conservation
2. Management and Conservation, and
3. Cultural and Ethical perspectives of conservation.

-The E-8 countries besides resolving to take necessary steps in the direction of elephant conservation also decided to actively pursue a common agenda to ensure long-term welfare and survival of all species of elephants in all range countries, and to realize this global goal, call upon all range countries to join hands under the umbrella of Elephant-50:50 Forum or the shared vision of 50 States to promote conservation, management and welfare of elephants in the next 50 years.

-The E-8 countries decided to hold the First International Congress of E-50:50 Forum in early 2013 at New Delhi, India for adopting a common global vision on conservation, management and welfare of elephants across all range countries.

Revision Questions

 

1. Haathi Mere Saathi is a compaign launched by the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) in partnership with

1. Worldwide Fund for Nature
2. Wildlife Trust of India
3. People for Ethical Treatment of Animals
4. Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

2. Which of the following countries is the group of 4 Asian countries which particiated in the Elephant-8 Ministerial Meeting held in Delhi on 24 May 2011

1. India - Bhutan - Thailand - Malaysia
2. India - Sri Lanka - Thailand - Indonesia
3. India - Thailand - Malaysia - Cambodia
4. India - Myanmar - Thailand - Bangladesh

3. Which of the following is the elephant species commonly found in India?

1. Elephas maximus
2. Loxodonta africana
3. Loxodonta cyclotis
4. None of the above

4. The E-8 Ministerial Meeting decided to join hands under the Elephant-50:50 Forum. What do the numbers 50:50 indicate?

1. 50 : 50 partnership of the people and the Government
2. 50% of countries from Africa and 50% of countries from Asia
3. 50 Elephant range countries for 50 years
4. None of the above

5. Which one of the following countries is not one of the 4 African countries which participated in the E-8 Ministerial Meeting held in New Delhi in May 2011?

1. Botswana
2. Republic of Congo
3. Tanzania
4. Zimbabwe