Raha, Nov 25: For Saraswati Teronpi, this year’s paddy harvest has been an unexpected blessing. The 40-year-old farmer from Hatikhuli Ronghang, a village on the border of Nagaon and Karbi Anglong districts, had long feared her crops would be destroyed by wild elephant herds—an annual nightmare that once forced her to abandon paddy cultivation.

But this season, her ten bighas of paddy fields were untouched, yielding a bountiful harvest she had once thought impossible.

“Every year, the elephant herds used to raid our paddy fields. I stopped paddy cultivation for many years. But this year, I am happy to see my harvest. Thanks to the Hati Bandhu for their initiative, which helped us keep our paddy safe,” says Teronpi, a resident of the village.

Saraswati’s story is not an isolated one. Raju Bora, a fellow farmer from Chapanala, shares a similar sentiment. "It is because of the efforts of Hati Bandhu that I could harvest my 30 bighas of paddy crop safely and well," he says.

Like Teronpi, Bora, and many other farmers in the region, their hard work has finally borne fruit, free from the devastation caused by wild elephants.

The reason behind this year’s bumper harvest lies in a unique initiative launched by Hati Bandhu, a conservation organisation founded in 2017 by environmentalists Pradip Bhuyan of Guwahati and Binod Dulu Bora of Nagaon.

The organisation’s mission is to reduce human-elephant conflict in the bordering areas of Nagaon and Karbi Anglong districts. Hati Bandhu has made significant strides toward achieving this goal, and its efforts have been a game-changer for local farmers.

Founded with a focus on tackling the recurring human-elephant conflicts in the region, Hati Bandhu introduced an innovative approach in 2008 - cultivating Napier grass and other forest fruits that elephants love in the plains adjacent to human settlements.

The idea was simple but effective—by providing food for the elephants in these designated areas, they would be less likely to invade farmland in search of sustenance.

Over the years, this approach has yielded positive results, significantly reducing the number of elephant raids on agricultural land. Today, the initiative has brought much-needed relief to local farmers, particularly in villages like Chapanala, Baijoori, and Hatikhuli Ronghang, where crop destruction by elephants was once a common occurrence.

“The Hati Bandhu team has done an excellent job. By creating a dedicated space for elephants to feed on, they’ve made it possible for us to cultivate our land without fear of it being raided. This has been a life-changing solution for farmers like me,” says Raju Bora.

The work of Hati Bandhu is not just about protecting crops; it is about fostering coexistence between humans and elephants. By addressing the root cause of the conflict—elephant hunger—the organisation has created a win-win situation for both the farmers and the elephants.