THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Animal Welfare Board of India has directed the Forest Department to immediately move the badly wounded temple elephants Sivasankaran and Kannan to a sanctuary for permanent rehabilitation.
The AWBI directive comes in the wake of the High Court order on April 10 asking the Forest Department to provide immediate medical assistance to the suffering elephants.
Sivasankaran belongs to the Parassala Sreemahadevar temple and Kannan to Neyyatinkara Sreekrishna Temple.
The AWBI, after it probed the condition of the elephants, had found that both the elephants displayed stereotypic behaviour such as repeated head wobbling and swaying, tics that indicated mental distress as well as boredom.
Neyyatinkara Kannan has never shown signs of ‘musth’ ever since he was brought to the temple though it was an adult bull, which the AWBI reports terms as “unnatural”. It was also a clear sign that the elephant was overworked without rest.
Parassala Sivasankaran’s hind legs had festering wounds where the rusted chains had cut deep into the flesh, suggesting it had been in chains for an unaccountable number of days.
It was a public interest litigation filed by People for Animals (PFA) that led to the court order. A Facebook page has also been opened to campaign for the rehabilitation of the two elephants.
Support for the elephants is pouring from all over the country. “Shivasankaran and Kannan, who have known nothing but hideous abuse, need rescuing now, without delay, so that they can get the care they so desperately need and deserve,” said Poorva Joshipura, the India CEO of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).
Official apathy was also widely criticised. “It’s a pity that the common people, NGO’s and other well wishers have to spend their time, money and energy to make officials do their duty for which they are paid for,” said PFA secretary Leela Latheef who was also petitioner in the case.
