What ails captive elephants in Kerala
Elephants in India may be considered as an embodiment of Lord Ganesha, but the status of captive jumbos in Kerala is anything but divine. Experts say the lack of proper medical care as well as money-minded owners pose a serious threat to the magnificent beasts.
According to a 70-year-old veterinarian Jacob Cheeran, of the 14,000 elephants in captivity in the world, around 26 per cent are in India. Cheeran, who on two occasions was also a member of the steering committee of the Central government’s Project Elephant initiative, told agencies that the captive elephants in Kerala number some 900 and have become milch cows for their owners, who lend them to temples and churches for religious functions.
“The average daily income from renting elephants ranges from Rs 3,000 to Rs10,000. The sad part is that the peak festival season happens in the colder months, when the elephants are in musth. But elephants hardly get rest and recuperation during the musth period because it means loss of income for both the owner and mahouts,” Cheeran said.
Alcoholism among mahouts and the lack of veterinarians qualified in handling elephantiasis are some of the other graving problems in the state which affects the jumbos.
However, a glimmer of hope is that now an elephant owner --film star-turned politician K B Ganesh Kumar --is the forest minister and has jurisdiction over the tuskers. He has already committed that he will set up an exclusive hospital for elephants in the state, probably in Thrissur.
Speaking to agencies, 46-year-old Jayagopal, a businessman based in Thrissur and also Vice-President of the Elephant Owners Federation, said things may be a lot better in the near future. “Now all elephants have a registration certificate, which has the name of the owner and other details. We will now ask the government to see that more elephant clinics are set up in Kerala,” said Jayagopal, who has a 50-year-old elephant which has been with him for the past 30 years.
