Exploring the Space Relations of Human-Wildlife Interactions in the Dooars of West Bengal, India

Human-Wildlife Relationship has its roots in the inception of human civilization, but in the last few decades, it has become a severe threat to both humans as well as wildlife. The human population growth, which is followed by unprecedented developmental activities, resulted in several environmental challenges, and the deterioration of Human-Wildlife Relations is one of them. The Dooars of North Bengal is known for its rich biodiversity in the sub-Himalayan region facing various problems in wildlife management, as the area is home to a large number of wild species. The main aim of the paper is to find out the space relations of Human-Wildlife Interactions in Dooars as popular perception is that the intensity of Human-Wildlife Interactions has been increasing and very little work has been done in this regard. All the available published and unpublished institutional data from the divisional offices of the Protected Areas in Dooars are used as well as content analysis of two renowned newspaper reports related to major incidents of Human-Wildlife Interactions. Though there was a rise of significant wildlife species in the Protected Areas of the Dooars, the conversion of quality forests and grasslands into value-added activities escalated frequent straying of wildlife from the Protected Areas causing massive loss of human lives and properties. These further create retaliatory feelings among the locales that result in the enormous mortality of wildlife. Therefore, the natural bonding of co-existence between Humans and Wildlife becomes very challenging in the Dooars of North Bengal.