Elephants in Captivity

By Tigmanshi

Our visit to WRCC mallur revealed a lot to me. I saw free elephants for the first time in my life, which was a warming feeling. At the same I was saddened to see the wounds that were inflicted upon the elephants at the time of captivity which left one the elephants arthritic. There were two elephants in the shelter; named Anisha and Gouri. Anisha was brought in the year 2013 from Kerala to Tamil Nadu and then to Karnataka. Her forelimbs are handicapped due to arthritis. She faces extreme difficulty in walking, sleeping and sitting. Gouri was recently brought in 2018 from a temple in Mysore. She was made to sleep on fully concrete floors which has left her feet infected. There were few other animals at the place, who were friends of Anisha and Gouri.

Animals as huge as elephants are subjected to force and tortured by humans for their own sake. With better facility, the conditions of elephants in captivity can be uplifted. However, there should be zero tolerance when it comes to private ownership of elephants, and only then the conditions of elephants can improve nationwide. Governments must stricten the laws. Animals are as much a part of this world as we are and their rights must be protected. The visit was a startling experience for me and I believe the experience is going to last forever. It has made me more aware.