News
New rules coming to ensure captive jumbos are cared for
New rules to enable the proper management and monitoring of captive elephants are being drafted to stop the increasing number of thefts of these animals, Wildlife Resources Conservation Minister Vijith Wijithamuni Soysa said.
The legislation will be in line with the South Indian state of Kerala’s Captive Elephants (Management and Maintenance) Rules and will also ensure that elephants taken in for domestication are not subject to cruelty, he said.
“There is a great demand by people to own elephants but as the demand is not met, unscrupulous persons have resorted to stealing the animals and selling them. We need to meet the demand by allowing for ownership of the elephants through a legal mechanism that will also ensure the welfare of the animal. Otherwise the black market that has been created for elephants will continue,” the Minister said.
There are around 130 domesticated elephants registered with the Wild Life Department but as there is no proper monitoring, animal rights groups allege that the animals are being subject to cruel treatment, are inadequately fed and live in poor conditions. The Minister said that traditionally Sri Lankan elephants were given to temples and devalas for religious festivals and hence it was important to ensure that a number of elephants are domesticated.
“While ensuring that the required number of elephants are made available for religious and other traditional activities, we also have to ensure the welfare of the animals. Even though elephant owners can stage protests and picket, the animals are unable to speak for their rights so I, as the Minister in charge, have to ensure that their rights are protected,” Minister Soysa said.
Under the proposed rules, those who wish to own animals will have to obtain a certificate of ownerships after making a relevant application to the Wild Life Department. “We will first ensure the suitability of the applicant to own an animal, such as his economic status, the reasons for wanting to own an elephant, etc.,” the Minister said.
There will also be strict guidelines on the suitability of the recruitment of mahouts who will have to be a person who has undergone training in managing an elephant and also guidelines for caring, feeding and transportation of animals. The new laws will also set an age of retirement for the animals.
The Minister said that the welfare of the elephants has to be ensured so that the animals do not die prematurely. “Over 250 elephants die each year due to various reasons such as accidents, shootings, etc.,” he added.
The Minister added that more modern techniques such as computerisation of the elephant register will also commence soon.