Dr. Avnish Jolly,17 June:There are about 800 captive elephants in Kerala, and temples and churches vie with one another to have elephants dressed up for their festivals. Sometimes the animals run amok and trample spectators.
Over 18 people have been killed by rampaging elephants in this year. Elephants run amok either because mahouts are not able to handle them properly or they are ill-treated. The elephants should be fed properly and allowed adequate rest and they become violent when they are overworked.
Elephant owners and veterinarians in Indian state of Kerala are getting together to frame guidelines for the management of the captive animal and to ensure they are not overworked and ill-treated. The Elephant Welfare Association of the state will hold a meeting on June 29 in Thrissur, about 300 km from here, to draw up a set of rules for the owners and handlers of captive elephants.
According to K B Ganesh Kumar, President, Kerala Elephant Owners Federation said that during the festival season in Kerala is close to six months and people make money by overworking the elephants. There have been instances when elephants have been made to work for more than 100 days in a six month period, which is dangerous. An elephant owner gets about Rs 50,000 for leasing out his animal for six months and there are rules for managing captive elephants but they are inadequate. We are glad that the seminar will come out with a comprehensive guideline.
Jacob Cheeran, Elephant Expert said we expect around 400 people to take part in the day-long seminar where about six papers will be presented and there will be a discussion and guidelines for proper elephant management will be drawn up by the end of the day. The proceedings will be submitted to the government.