The Maharashtra forest department has agreed to keep 12 captive elephants at the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) and Gadchiroli. It intends to transport them to Reliance’s Radhe Krishna Elephant Welfare relief centre in Jamnagar, Gujarat, where they will be rescued.
“Within the first part, all of the six elephants at Tadoba’s Botezari camp will probably be shifted by this month-end,” Sunil Limaye, Maharashtra’s principal chief conservator of forests (wildlife), confirmed. “Within the second part, six elephants from Gadchiroli — three from Patanil in Allapalli, and three from Kamlapur in Sironcha division — will be shifted likely in January 2022.”
In Vidarbha, the forest division is in charge of 20 captive elephants. These include seven in Kamlapur, three in Patanil under the Allapalli division, six in Tadoba, and four in Melghat, all of which are being used for tourism purposes.
Reliance is establishing a zoo on 280 acres near its refinery in Moti Khavdi, near Jamnagar. It would be home to 100 different mammalian, bird, reptile, and amphibian species. According to sources, a few of the animals will most likely be used for the zoo.
Dr Prakash Amte’s ‘Animal Ark’ in Hemalkasa, Gadchiroli, had previously dispatched one leopard and three sloth bears to Reliance’s proposed zoo. “The Ark delivered three sloth bears and a leopard to the Reliance zoo in Jamnagar last month. The animals were transported after receiving transit clearance from the state forest division and the necessary permissions from the Central Zoo Authority (CZA),” according to sources at Amte’s office.
“These animals were readily available,” says the narrator. Previously, animals were sent to Maharajbagh zoo in Nagpur, Gorewada zoo in Nagpur, and Pune zoo,” they said.
“We weren’t using these elephants for any forestry work,” Limaye said. “Lakhs of rupees are being spent on their repairs.” We were considering moving these elephants to a good centre after the Tadoba elephant killed a worker. We spoke with the MoEFCC and ‘Venture Elephant,’ and they usually agreed to transfer them to Radhe Krishna Belief’s rescue centre.”
“All of the elephants available for adoption are untrained. We plan to transport two skilled captive elephants from Karnataka, Lava and Kush, as well as the contractual workers, to Tadoba. Two more elephants will most likely be introduced in the second part. These tuskers will most likely be used for rescue missions and man-animal conflict. “The MoEFCC has also agreed to the elephants being relocated from Karnataka,” Limaye said.
Gadchiroli conservator of forests (CF) Kishore Mankar stated the three elephants in Patanil are previous. Two have retired whereas one of many elephants was captured from Kolhapur throughout battle. These elephants had been used for forestry operations however should not in use now.
Uday Patel, the honorary wildlife of Gadchiroli, was pleased with the decision. “Gajraj, the ferocious Tadoba elephant, has killed three people,” he said. These elephants have become a legal responsibility, with Rs25 lakh spent on their upkeep each year. In addition, maintenance workers can be hired to keep them in good working order. Second, the animals are infected with herpes and should infect other animals as well. The tuskers are being transported to a trustworthy location where they will be properly cared for.”
