Jumbo help to captive tuskers

Hyderabad: Highly intelligent, social and friendly – elephants have been a part of Indian traditions and cultures for eons. However, while on one hand these animals are worshiped, on the other the captive elephants suffer severe abuse from their owners, who sometimes do not even give them enough to eat. Govind Gurur Roysan, founder of […]

Hyderabad: Highly intelligent, social and friendly – elephants have been a part of Indian traditions and cultures for eons. However, while on one hand these animals are worshiped, on the other the captive elephants suffer severe abuse from their owners, who sometimes do not even give them enough to eat.

Govind Gurur Roysan, founder of Gaja Raksha, an organisation that works for the well-being of captive elephants, has been working to ensure better lives to such elephants. A graduate in hotel management, the activist worked in the IT sector for a couple of years, before giving up everything to help the elephants.

Govind who was in the city to create awareness among students, says, “captive elephants go through a lot of suffering in this country. From being beaten brutally to learn order, to standing endlessly outside places of worship and sometimes not even getting enough food or eating the wrong food, the animal really leads a difficult life.”

The activist worked at the Dudhwa National Park, where apart from taking care of the animals, he also taught about 100 tribal children about saving the environment. Later, he joined a captive elephant camp near Puducherry as a centre manager and cared for three injured elephants.

While elephants in the forest areas remain safe, Govind says the animals in captivity suffer the most. An elephant is supposed to walk a certain distance daily but captive elephants are made to stand for long hours. “Some are chained to a location, due to which they get holes in their footpads, or their feet become septic,” he points out.

Another thing of worry for the pachyderms is to carry tourists on their back which can fracture the elephants’ back and as they can’t be treated for it they suffer immense pain and ultimately die. “Sometimes, the elephants can develop life-threatening sores on their backs and hips when they are made to carry heavy loads frequently,” explains Govind, who hails from Bengaluru.

As noble as the initiative is, it comes with its fair share of troubles. Says Govind, “There are several players involved in the illegal transportation and captivity of these tuskers. Many times when I go to help the animal I get death threats too. Another tricky thing is elephants can suffer from the Stockholm syndrome – where a hostage develops a psychological bond with their captors during captivity. The elephant sees that the mahout or owner is not happy with my presence and they try to attack me too.”

Having worked with over 40 mahouts, Govind is working on creating a friendly environment for captive elephants.

“We have to work on creating a better living environment for them. Simple measures like sheathing the elephant’s chains with rubber, creating larger enclosures, providing them with a rubber mat to stand on so that their foot is protected, and giving them a good quantity of quality food can improve their conditions,” he adds.

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