The pre-dawn silence in Hajigaon, a village situated on the green hills of Chattogram's Karnaphuli upazila, is often shattered by the distant rumble of a colossal presence.

It's the sound of elephants, the gentle giants venturing out of the dwindling forests, seeking food and space.

For 46-year-old Mohammed Hashem, this is a call to duty.

The response team in Chattogram. Photo: Star

He starts his day by patrolling through the dense forests, trying to detect the subtle signs of elephant movements.

Hashem is a member of the Elephant Response Team (ERT), a group of locals assigned by the forest department to mitigate the escalating human-elephant conflict in the region.

There are 130 ERTs working under the forest department in the country at present.

Since 2018, Hashem and his fellows have been on the frontlines, working to safeguard both the elephants and the human communities that share their habitat.

The ERT's main task is to identify elephants before they encroach upon human settlements, gently guiding them back to their natural habitat.

Despite their efforts, Hashem, like his fellow ERT members, has never received any financial support from the government.

All they get is a uniform, pair of shoes and whistle.

"We are working to save elephants from poachers. We also protect residents and their wealth from elephant attacks," Hashem said.

"We face risks, from potential elephant attacks to the dangers of navigating the dense jungle," Hashem adds, "yet we received no financial support from the government," he says.

Without a formal framework or any form of supervision, the teams operated with limited accountability, sometimes leading to unforeseen incidents.

However, this may change soon. The government has recently allocated Tk 45 lakh for 50 ERTs at Anwara and Karnaphuli upazila of Chattogram.

 "It will allow us to pay the ERT members, ensuring their commitment and enabling us to hold them accountable for their duties," said Abu Naser Md. Yasin Newaz, divisional forest officer.

Imran Ahmed, conservator of the Wildlife and Nature Conservation Region, said, "While the initial allocation may not be substantial, it symbolises a significant shift in government policy and paves the way for increased support in the future."

HUMAN-ELEPHANT COEXISTENCE UNDER THREAT

The country has 268 resident critically endangered Asian elephants. Most of them live in Chattogram, Cox's Bazar, and the Chittagong Hill Tracts, according to 2016 Forest Department data.

The destruction of habitats, corridors, and food sources is fueling elephant invasions and increasing human-wildlife conflict across the country.

Due to this conflict, 248 people died in elephant attacks between 2013-14 and 2022-23, while poachers killed at least 50 elephants in the last five years, according to the Forest Department.

Wildlife experts urged the government to develop a sustainable solution to reduce the conflict.

Mohammad Abdul Aziz, professor of Zoology at Jahangirnagar University and a member of the Elephant Specialist Group of South Asia, described the recent government allowance as a temporary solution.

He said elephants enter human settlements when they feel disturbed or experience a loss of food sources.

People then attempt to chase them away, which exacerbates the conflict.

"Therefore, we need to conserve elephant habitats, corridors, and their food sources for a sustainable solution," he added.