Applying \'plan bee\' successfully

The arrival of an elephant -not by choice but swept by flood waters -from India kept inhabitants of a few villages under Sarishabari upazila, Jamalpur district in a state of anxiety for about two months. People were inquisitive also about it because it is a privilege to see a pachyderm from the wild in any locality from close quarters. However, people whose crops and structures of any value were damaged were not amused.  
Imagine if there were an invasion by a herd of elephants! The lone and isolated jumbo was not particularly aggressive. Also it roamed about in areas submerged by flood waters. So the question of causing enormous material damage does not arise. Attempts made several times for its rescue were aborted first and then failed only, it seems, because of inexperience on the part of those in charge. Or, they would not have tranquilised the animal twice in quick succession. Many have complained -and not for nothing -that the death of Bangabahadur, as it was lovingly named by the locals there, was a case of plain murder.
Now, the fact is that confrontations between the largest mammals on land and people are happening much too often. So is the case with the kings of animal world -lions, which strayed out of Nairobi National Park and into the Kenyan capital's residential area. Timid and smaller animals dare not announce their presence in crowded localities. Even elephants are not keen on entering areas where people live unless their habitats are grossly encroached upon and they run short of foods.
With human settlements claiming more forest lands deep inside, elephants are paying near regular visits in villages in close proximity with forests in Asia and Africa. It is almost impossible to deter a herd of these mammoths from entering human settlements and ravaging houses, property and crops. Treated as protected animals everywhere, they also cannot be killed. Use of honks, drums, cymbals or bells does not quite work.
In Africa, the use of stinging bees has been quite successful. Small the bees may be but their stings are sharp and when a swarm of bees fall upon an invading herd, the largest animals do not forget the lesson. Once stung, they get twice shy. All one needs to protect crops or huts from the jumbos is to go for apiary or raising bees. The bees serve as the new line of defence against invading elephants. Beehives in this case are hoisted on the eyeline levels of elephants. They are then connected to thin ropes. When elephants enter the area, the ropes cause the beehives to disturb and the large invaders are invaded by small invaders. In the confrontation between David and Goliath, the latter has neither defence nor can they spot the enemy for attack.
So the technique has proved very effective against rampaging elephants in Africa. Thailand's farmers are also replicating it with satisfactory results. The stings give elephants enough pain not to forget the experience. After all, these are among the most, if not the most, intelligent animals in the wild. Farmers who have applied the ingenious method of shooing away elephants have the added advantage of collecting substantial honey from beehives. In Bangladesh, the number of elephants is declining fast but the clashes over grazing and foraging lands between these animals and man are reported sometimes. People in the affected areas can try the method. But at the same time, it has to be remembered that wild animals, elephants included, have been pushed to the brink. So the principle ought to be - thus far and no further.