Government issues notices to mahouts for maltreatment of elephants

Following reports that six licensed elephants were being maltreated in the national capital, the AAP government’s forest department officials are on their toes and have issued showcause notices to mahouts to explain in detail what measures they have taken for the upkeep of these animals. The mahouts have been told to give all relevant details about food, accommodation and hygiene they have been providing to their elephants. If mahouts fail to satisfy the forest department officials, they will face the risk of losing the license of their elephants.

The department has also expressed serious reservation over the way mahouts have been taking elephants out on roads without providing prior information to the traffic police. As per the law, it is mandatory for mahouts to provide prior information to the police before bringing elephants on roads as their movement often leads to massive traffic jams.

Earlier, the forest officials had sleepless nights after reports surfaced that six elephants had gone missing from the capital. Taking cognisance of the incident, forest officials had launched a serious exercise to ascertain the whereabouts of the elephants. The department had at that time too issued showcause notices to the mahouts whose elephants had gone missing mysteriously from their defined habitat.

On the recent showcause notices, a senior official said, “Why shouldn’t the licences of the mahouts be cancelled if they are unable to give satisfactory replies about the defined habitat of their elephants, besides other requisite information sought by our department ”

Official data available with the wildlife department show there were eight licensed elephants in Delhi last year. Of the eight elephants, two have already been moved to Gujarat.

“The department has now decided to carry out a fresh inspection of all the elephants being kept under licence in the city,” the official said. “A final call on the matter will be taken after we receive replies to the showcause notices,” he added.

The elephants in Delhi belong to individuals who traditionally use them to earn their living. The elephants often face health hazards from walking on tar roads for long hours while carrying heavy loads that cause cracks and blisters on their foot pads. Also, the elephants require a constant supply of food, which is reportedly not catered for in their captive existence where they are fed twice or thrice a day.

There were 24 elephants in the city till 2009. But their habitat along the banks of the Yamuna at Thokar, near the ITO Bridge, was disturbed during the 2010 Commonwealth Games. As the games village and the Millennium Bus Depot took shape, the elephants were thrown out to the far flung Sangam Vihar area in the Outer Delhi. Animal rights groups have time and again been asking for the rescue and rehabilitation of exploited elephants held in captivity.