Vantara, a sanctuary for tamed elephants and other Wildlife located in Jamnagar, Gujarat has taken 20 elephants to protect them from Arunachal Pradesh’s captive industry.
These animals will never have to be forced into labor again and now they can live without chain freely.
Vantara is a sanctuary, which was established by philanthropist Anant Ambani, will be a home for the rescued 10 male, 8 female and 1 sub-adults and one calf elephants.
The rescue operation was carried out with the approval of a high-powered committee constituted by the Tripura High Court and mandated by the Supreme Court. It had the full consent of the animals’ owners.
Laxmi, a 10 year old elephant who has deep, untreated wounds that make it difficult for her to bear weight on her hind legs, is one of the rescued animals. Additionally, it has a fresh, painful hole in the sensitive area of its right ear that is an inch in diameter. These were both created during the domestication process to establish human dominance.
Maya, a two-year-old captive-born calf, was rescued along with her mother Rongmoti, who had sustained severe major wounds on her chest and buttocks due to long hours of logging work.
Ramu, a bull elephant, suffered greatly both physically and psychologically as a result of being kept tightly bound by both his front and hind legs, which lasts from 4 to 6 months.
Due to an altercation with a wild bull elephant while foraging, Babulal another bull elephant, suffered a severely broken and bleeding tail. He had lost his innate ability to defend himself due to years of imprisonment.
Apart from providing lifelong care to the elephants, the project provides new livelihood opportunities for owners, mahouts and their families in Vantara.
They will be given intensive training in humane and scientifically supported methods of managing elephants, ensuring a future of compassionate care for animals and empowering their caretakers with the knowledge and skills to support this vision.
The organization has obtained all the required paperwork under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, including obtaining a no-objection certificate from the Gujarat Forest Department and a transport permit from the Arunachal Pradesh Forest Department. The elephants will be transported in a specially designed elephant ambulance, with calf Maya travelling with her mother.
A dedicated team of over 200 experts, including elephant veterinarians, senior caretakers and ambulance drivers from Vantara, will ensure the safe and friendly transport of the animals while following strict transport guidelines and animal welfare standards.
Tabang Jamoh, divisional forest officer in Namsai, had said that , with an active breeding population of about 200 captive elephants in Arunachal Pradesh, DNA profiling is being carried out to closely monitor their health and welfare. The transfer of 20 elephants to the Radhe Krishna Mandir Elephant Welfare Trust in Vantara, as directed by a Supreme Court-appointed committee, ensures a brighter future for these animals. This initiative enhances animal welfare while providing alternative livelihoods to local communities, striking a balance between conservation, community welfare and forest protection.
