The government has cleared three major elephant corridors — Wetahirakanda, Hadapanagala and Koholankala — of illegal encroachments to restore them as free movement routes under the national programme to address Sri Lanka’s long-running human-elephant conflict, Environment Minister Dr. Dhammika Patabendi said.
Speaking at a press conference at the Government Information Department on Monday alongside Deputy Minister Anton Jayakody, Dr. Patabendi said the three corridors had been obstructed for years by irregular development projects and politically motivated land allocations, disrupting traditional elephant migratory routes and intensifying conflict with villages. The government had moved to resolve legal, administrative and social issues attached to the lands and restore them for wildlife use, he said.
The clearance is distinct from the three elephant corridors gazetted on 2 June — Hambantota–Bundala, Wadahitakanda–Udawalawe and Hadapanagala–Demodara — which formalised new protected linkages. The two tracks together signal a wider government push to disentangle elephant range from human settlement after a year in which more than 128 wild elephant deaths were recorded.
As part of the programme, “Elephant Feeding Zones” will be established inside wildlife reserves to discourage incursions into villages, the Minister said. The zones will be planted with natural grasses and food plants, while existing tanks and ponds will be rehabilitated to supply water during dry seasons.
Dr. Patabendi has driven a series of wildlife policy actions in recent weeks, including the Cabinet decision to rescind the previous administration’s domesticated-elephant decisions and the proposal for a managed elephant reserve in Hambantota.
