Human-Elephant Conflicts: A graduate student’s experiences in India

By: A. Nicole Reed
July-August 2017 Trip to Coimbatore, India

As I stepped off the plane in Coimbatore, India, I never imagined it would change my perceptions of the world any more than it had three years ago. This would be my second time in India and I thought I knew what to expect. Everything from the food and smells to what local farmers were experiencing on their land. However, each day was a new experience filled with new information and lessons learned.

Collecting stakeholders input on human-elephant conflict
in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India (August 2018)

This trip was for collecting data on people’s experiences and opinions about elephants raiding crop fields in and around Coimbatore District which will be part of my master’s thesis project. I traveled to small villages near and away from the forested areas and spoke to farmers about the conflicts they were experiencing with elephants. I visited these villages with my thesis adviser and faculty members from two colleges in Coimbatore. We interviewed about 100 farmers and other stakeholders and learned the difficulties they face to protect their crops and make a living. I also learned which mitigation efforts are more effective than others.

With students, staff and faculty at Kongunadu A&S College, Coimbatore (August 2018)

I stayed at two different colleges and met many people of different backgrounds and was fortunate to take part in a river festival with one of the college official’s families. This experience helped me better understand the culture in India and allowed me to make lasting relationships with many.

There were several opportunities for myself as well as my project to develop further, perhaps though, my biggest take away from this trip was the need for communication among professionals across disciplines as well as internationally. I was also asked to present on wildlife and land management in the United States. The exchange of information available could help us work toward solving global issues such as human-wildlife conflicts. This type of communication would allow each of us to learn from each other quickly and create better, well informed, decisions. Overall, my time spent in India was useful on several levels and allowed me to collect my data as well as learn more about the culture and history of the area. 

Is genetically modified cotton responsible for the economic hardships faced by farmers in Central India?

William Baxter, Celia Karim, and Bryan McInerney presented their research on the genetically modified Bt cotton and its possible links to economic hardships faced by farmers in Central India. 


Protecting crops from pest infestation and diseases is one way to increase to reduce losses.  Genetically modified crops are promoted as one of the ways to increase crop yield by protecting them against pest attacks.

Bt cotton, a GM crop, was developed by introducing a toxic gene from a bacterium (Bacillus thuringiensis) into cotton plants to build resistance against the pink bollworm (Pectinophora gossypiella), a major pest of this crop.

Bt cotton was marketed in India with hopes of higher yield and lower input cost.  However, the farmers did not understand that Bt cotton was susceptible to other pests and drought, which resulted in unexpected outcome.

Their presentation focused on the introduced of Bt cotton in India and its impact on the lives of farmers in Central India.

Controversies surrounding the introduction of Bt Brinjal in India

Monika Leininger, Mariah Strike, and Travis Brammer presented an overview of the controversies surrounding the introduction of genetically modified Brinjal (Egg plant) in India.

One way to increase crop yield is to reduce the losses due to pest infestation and diseases. Growing Genetically Modified (GM) crops is promoted as one of the ways to increase crop yield by minimizing losses.

Disease or pest resistant genes from animals are introduced into commonly grown crops thereby increasing their resistance to pest infestations and hence increasing the yield. One such GM crop that is being considered for introduction in India is Bt Brinjal or eggplant, which could increase crop yield and also help increase profit margins for the farmers.

However, introduction of animal-based genetic material into plants raises strong resistance from various sectors of the population due to a variety of reasons. Opponents of Bt Brinjal or other GM crops warn potential side effects such as allergies in humans, pesticide resistance in plants leading to increased chemical use, loss of biodiversity, damage to non-targeted crops through genetic drift, and ethical issues.