News: Gaj Gaurav Awards 2026 were conferred during World Elephant Day 2026 celebrations at Visakhapatnam.

About

• Instituted: 2022 by MoEFCC.
• Purpose: Recognises frontline contributions to Asian elephant conservation and management.
• Introduced during the 30-year milestone of Project Elephant (launched in 1992).

Focus

• Honours mahouts, forest guards, trackers, village watchers & local communities.
• Recognises efforts in human-elephant conflict mitigation, elephant rescue, corridor protection and anti-poaching.
• Covers both wild and captive elephant management.
• Awarded annually around World Elephant Day – 12 August.

2026 Awardees

• Jaldapara National Park, West Bengal: 7 mahouts recognised for flood-rescue and elephant protection.
• Namdapha National Park & Tiger Reserve, Arunachal Pradesh: 2 caregivers recognised for captive elephant welfare and management.