Killing of pregnant elephant triggers nationwide outrage

Killing of pregnant elephant triggers nationwide outrage

NGO Announces ₹1L Cash Reward For Info Leading To Culprits’ Arrest

TNN & AGENCIES

Palakkad: 04.06.2020

The killing of a pregnant wild elephant has triggered a nationwide outrage even as Kerala chief minister promised strict action against the offenders. “The forest department is probing the case and the culprits won’t be spared,” chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Wednesday.

Mannarkkad forest division registered a case and initiated a probe into killing of the 15-yearold cow elephant. Two organizations announced cash reward to anyone providing information that would lead to the arrest of the offenders.

The elephant had chewed on an explosive-stuffed pineapple that went off in its mouth. The injured animal stood in Velliyar River, where it died on May 27 at Thiruvizhamkunnu forest section in Kottopadam grama panchayat. The forest department had employed two kumki elephants to rescue the injured animal. The efforts went in vain.

According to Mannarkkad divisional forest officer (DFO) Sunil Kumar, the elephant might have come from Silent Valley National Park’s buffer zone. It died on a private land 300m from Thiruvizhamkunnu forest section. “We have registered a case for killing the wild elephant but nobody has been arrested. We are waiting for the postmortem report to find out the exact cause of its death,” he said. The officer said the firecracker-filled fruit could have been placed to kill crop-raiding wild animals.

Wildlife warden of Silent Valley National Park Samuel V Pachuau said that patrolling has been intensified after the elephant’s death.

Meanwhile, BJP leader Maneka Gandhi slammed the state government—and Rahul Gandhi—for not taking cruelty against animals seriously. She came down heavily on the illtreatment of captive elephants. “Forest secretary should be removed and the minister (for wildlife protection), if he has any sense, should resign. Rahul Gandhi is from that area, why has he not taken action,” she asked. The elephant’s tragic end became public after a forest official, Mohan Krishnan, tendered an emotional apology on his Facebook page.

“Sorry sister,” Krishnan, who witnessed the elephant’s death, posted on Facebook. “With her mouth and tongue destroyed in the explosion, she paced around hungry without being able to eat. She must have been more worried about the health of the child inside her than about her own hunger.”

Several celebrities including Virat Kohli, Anushka Sharma, Shraddha Kapoor, Randeep Hooda, John Abraham and Akshay Kumar demanded action against animal cruelty.

Announcing a reward of ₹1 lakh, Wildlife SOS, an NGO, said the practice of stuffing explosives in food materials has been often done to maim and kill wild animals. It added that it would ensure that the heinous act would not go unpunished. The NGO could be contacted over its elephant hotline 9971699727 or over email, info@wildlifesos.org.

(With inputs from Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi)