All elephant safari centres shut in Idukki
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The Forest Department has issued a stop memo to all elephant safari centres in Idukki.
The department made the move after a mahout was trampled to death by a cow elephant at Kerala Farm, a private elephant safari centre at Kallar, near Adimaly, in Idukki on Thursday.
Neeleswaram resident Balakrishnan, 62, the second mahout, was killed while he was waiting near the animal to take tourists on a safari.
“ The functioning of all 10 elephant safari centres was stopped on Saturday onwards. The Forest Department will conduct routine inspection of the closed centres,” said Idukki Social Forestry Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Vipindas P.K.
Officials said that 36 elephants were used for elephant safari in Idukki district, and only eight were registered under the Forest Department.
In the State, elephant safari centres were functioning only in Idukki. Most of the cow elephants cannot be used for temple festival purposes. The elephant owners rented out cow elephants to safari centres, a source said.
Officials said a captive elephant management amendment rule meeting will be held at Thiruvananthapuram on June 26. The Chief Wildlife warden, Social Forestry DFO, elephant owners federation representatives, elephant workers association members, and NGO members will attend the meeting.
“ The meeting will discuss captive elephant management-related issues. After the meeting, the government will take a further decision,” said a Forest Department official.
However, M.N. Jayachandran, district secretary of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), said that the Wildlife Protection Act clearly states that wild elephants should not be used for commercial purposes.
“ The elephant safari centres were using the animals for commercial purposes, and we should shut all such centres,” said Mr. Jayachandran.
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