ILLEGAL TRANSFER OF FEMALE ELEPHANT

January 9, 2005

hecal_2000 <hecal_2000 wrote: animal_net

" hecal_2000 "

Sat, 08 Jan 2005 22:11:33 -0000

[animal_net] India: ILLEGAL TRANSFER OF FEMALE ELEPHANT

STOP THIS TRANSFER

GIFT OF ELEPHANT VEDA AGAINST LEGAL NORMS TO ARMENIA

As a gesture of goodwill, the President and the Prime Minister of

India have decided to gift a young female elephant from South India

to a cold place like the Yerevan Zoo in Armenia.

Noble as the thought may be, the repurcussions of this gesture are

anything but 'goodwill' for the animals concerned.

VEDA, a 6 year old female elephant known to many Bangaloreans as the

gentle pachyderm from Bannerghatta Biological Park in Bangalore

(Karnataka), has been condemned to a fate worse than death by the

higher authorities. In total disregard of animal welfare and the many

legal provisions and Government policies that prohibit the transfer of

wild animals and ensure protection to captive animals and endangered

species, the Government of India has gone forward with the proposal to

transfer Veda, from the Bannerghatta Biological park (BBP) to Yerevan

Zoo in Armenia in West Asia.

The proposed transfer of Veda, a Schedule 1 wild animal to Yerevan Zoo

in Armenia is in violation of The Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

Act, 1960; The Wildlife Protection Act, 1972; The Indian Constitution;

and the State Government Policy. Section 42 of the Wildlife

Protection Act clearly states that the Chief Wildlife Warden, in

respect of any wild animal, shall ensure that the Applicant has

adequate facilities for housing, maintenance and upkeep of an animal.

In the present case, no enquiry or investigation with respect to the

conditions prevailing in the Yerevan Zoo, Armenia has been made by the

Chief Wildlife Warden or the State / Central Governments.

The State Government of Karnataka, vide Government Order dated

28-06-2000 has banned the transfer of the elephants within or outside

the State. Section 48A of the Indian Constitution calls upon the State

to protect wildlife. The proposed transfer is also in violation of

Section 11 (1) clauses a, b, d, e, f and h of Prevention of Cruelty to

Animals Act which deals with cruelty to animals generally. In view of

the above the proposed transfer of Veda is against the principles of

natural justice and the above legal provisions.

Veda, the gentle, playful youngster, born in captivity in BBP is

living happily and comfortably along with the other Bannerghatta

elephants as part of the elephant family in the Park. The environment

is closest to the forest habitat and all her physical and

psychological needs are met by the forest department which is totally

equipped to take care of elephants.

At Bannerghatta Biological Park, the elephants are provided with

sufficient food and water according to their needs, taken to the

forests in the evenings and allowed to roam freely in the forest

during the evening and night, brought back to the camp in the

mornings, where they are allowed to wallow in the lake and given

leisurely baths. Most importantly the elephants live in a closely

related herd which is vital to their well being.

In total contrast, the Yerevan Zoo in Armenia is a zoo and unlike

Bannerghatta Biological Park is not an forest sanctuary. Apart from

the freezing cold climate, the conditions of Yerevan Zoo Armenia are

totally unsuitable to house and maintain an elephant. It has been

reliably learnt that the outer elephant enclosure in the said zoo is

less than 10,000 sq. ft and the winter shed is less than 2,500 sq.

ft., which is totally inadequate to house an elephant for the rest of

it's life.

Winters in Armenia range from four to six months in a year from –4 to

–14 degrees below freezing point. Climatic conditions of Armenia are

thus totally unsuitable for elephants and as a result the poor animal

will be subjected to tremendous hardship and suffering.

Apart from the totally unsuitable climatic conditions of Armenia,

Yerevan Zoo lacks the space, infrastructure and facilities to meet the

physical and psychological needs of Veda.

Isolation:- Veda, who is now part of a large, loving elephant family

will be forced to live in isolation in Yerevan Zoo. Though the Zoo is

supposed to have a male elephant, the same cannot be compared to

living with an all female, close knit family which is an important

condition for a sensitive, social and herd animal like an elephant.

Studies reveal that female elephants in particular need to live in

herds along with other female elephants. Therefore the Yerevan Zoo

cannot meet this requirement of Veda and separating Veda from her

present family herd amounts to utmost cruelty.

Exercise:- Elephants require plenty of exercise for digestion and also

to maintain the condition of their feet. Presently Veda is accustomed

to long walks in the adjoining forests of BBP where she is allowed to

roam freely after evening hours. Unfortunately the Yerevan Zoo at

Armenia does not have the conditions or space to provide for any

grazing or exercise.

Transportation:- Transportation of Veda is also likely to result in

tremendous physical and emotional stress which can be easily avoided.

Health:- Elephants in European and West Asian zoos all suffer from

degenerative joint diseases, arthritis and painful bone conditions,

due to standing on concrete floors for many hours. The flooring for

the enclosures are usually concrete and wood which contribute

significantly towards these medical problems. Elephants are recorded

to live shorter lives in zoos, where stillbirth, infanticide and

calf-rejection are collectively responsible for 74% of the deaths of

infant elephants born in European zoos .

The proposed transfer of Veda cannot also be justified on any grounds.

While the CITES permits transfer of wild animals for the

purposes of conservation, education and research, the proposed

transfer of Veda does not in any way contribute to conservation,

education or research as conservation of a species cannot be carried

out by a country which is totally alien to the species in question.

According to Dr. Karen Manvelyan, former scientific director of the

Yerevan Zoo, the zoo in Armenia should focus on rare and endangered

species of its own country like Armenian Muflon, Bezoar goat, Leopard,

Caucasian black grouse, Caspian snow cock and other Armenia endangered

species. Wild life experts are also now of the view that zoos do not

in any way help in education and research as they do not present the

true picture of animals in wild. Education can be better achieved by

films etc. on wild animals in the natural habitat.

The Central Zoo Authority (CZA) and the Captive Specialist Group

(CBSG) to which India is a signatory has categorically stated in its

National Zoo Policy that all Governments should ensure that State

gifts of living animals should be compatible with ongoing conservation

or captive breeding programmes. It is also to be noted that Yerevan

Zoo has no such ongoing conservation or breeding programmes and

therefore the proposed transfer is totally unnecessary.

Research studies reveal that zoos do not have the space and other

conditions to house and maintain elephants and keeping of elephants in

zoos is stressful and traumatic for the animals as their physical and

psychological needs are not met. In light of the above, the San

Francisco and Detroit Zoos have banned the keeping of elephants .

It has become a trend for politicians to gift elephants to temples,

states and countries without realizing the consequences of their

actions and overlooking the prevailing laws relating to wildlife and

most of all the well being and the welfare of the animals themselves.

It is high time that this unfortunate practice is checked and put to

an end.

FROM

Suparna Baksi-Ganguly

Founder-Trustee and Vice-President

Compassion Unlimited Plus Action (CUPA)

257, Ist Cross, HAL IInd Stage, Indira Nagar

Bangalore - 560038 INDIA

Phone: 91-80-22212215 / 22278678

Fax: 91-80-22293771 / 22279657

suparnaganguly

January 9, 2005

where should we write to regarding Veda the elephant???

January 10, 2005

Gifting an elephant may look like a goodwill gesture but not at the animals

expense. I have visited several countries in the Eastern Bloc and have seen

the zoo's there. The conditions are hardly what one can call even

acceptable. I would suggest the Prime Minister offer something else instead

than condemning an animal to such a fate.

Animal Protection groups in Armenia should be made aware of this. I hope

this stops.

Robin Krish

Montreal

-

" Dr.Sandeep Kumar Jain " <jeevdaya04

<presidentofindia; <manmohan;

<secy

Cc: <aapn >; " Animalnet " <animal_net >

Saturday, January 08, 2005 11:36 PM