Environmental group Nature Conservation Foundation (NCF) is looking to use text messages to bring down the numbers of deaths in India caused by elephants.
The idea, given birth in 2012, is based on research obtained about elephant-related deaths in Valparai, an area in Tamil Nadu, India, which states that 36 of the 41 deaths from elephant attacks in the area over the past 20 years could have been avoided if the victims received a warning, according to Phys.org.
Valparai, which has experienced dozens of deaths from elephants, is an area surrounded by forest, and elephants often pass through it to get from one part of the forest to another. This leaves the near 70,000 residents little choice but to try to live with them.
The NCF is combating this problem by setting up a network of local people tasked with keeping track of the elephants and sending updates on their location in the form of SMS messages, Phys.org reported. Red beacon lights are also used that are activated with a missed call from a mobile number. The group designed the lights so that they can be seen from far away by people who don't have phones, or for those who are in areas that have bad connections.
The initiative has so far seen success, with figures showing that elephant-related deaths in Valparai have declined from three to one since the NCF started the plan.
Many residents have benefited from the new warning system, such as 38-year-old Geetha Thomas, a tea plantation worker who was able to avoid a herd of rampaging elephants after getting a text alert.
"Everyone keeps a cell phone here for safety. Before we didn't know where the elephants were," said tea picker Mani Megalai. "Now that we do, thanks to the SMS, we feel much safer."
