Need to align efforts of infrastructure, development with wildlife conservation: Prabhu

There is a need to align efforts of infrastructure and development with wildlife conservation to create an ideal balance where both can thrive without negatively impacting the other, Union minister Suresh Prabhu said today.

Underlining that the population of elephants is critically threatened by the increasing man-animal conflicts, Prabhu said there is a need to protect the jumbos.

"There is a need to align infrastructure and development efforts with wildlife conservation efforts to create an ideal balance where both can thrive without negatively impacting the other," the Union Commerce minister said in a video message.

He was speaking ahead of the World Elephant Day celebrations tomorrow on the occasion of which a four-day 'Gaj Mahotsav' has been organised.

The festival, which would start from tomorrow, has been organised by the Wildlife Trust of India in association with the Environment Ministry, UN Environment and International Fund for Animal Welfare.

Vivek Menon, Executive Director and CEO of the Wildlife Trust of India, said the festival's main aim was to tell people that elephants, who were also the national heritage animal of India, were important.

The festival would see exhibition of 101 life-sized elephant art installations. There would also be sculptures designed by artists from across the country, Menon said.

Alka Pande, a curator of sculptures, said all the artists had contributed in their own creative way of what elephants meant to them personally.