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Nature protectors battle with Army to save rehab home elephant calf
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Kandula VII (pictured) has reached the age of retirement and the Army is looking for a replacement calf to be named as Kandula VIII and used as the SLLI's mascot
The Sri Lanka Army’s bid to remove an orphaned elephant calf from the Udawalawe Elephant Transit Home (ETH) to serve as the new regimental mascot of the Sri Lanka Light Infantry (SLII) has run into protests.
In a statement, the Wildlife and Nature Protection Society of Sri Lanka (WNPS), points out that since its establishment by the Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC) in 1995, the ETH has been used as a centre to rehabilitate orphaned elephant calves until they are released back into the wild. A total of 149 young elephants have been released back into the wild in this manner since 1995, it noted.
The nature activist group points out that this was not the first time that an elephant calf from ETH was to be given to the Army. in contravention of ETH’s founding principles, an elephant was taken from ETH nine years ago and given to the Army to be “paraded as a symbol of servitude.”
Upon reaching maturity, the young male elephant killed one soldier and seriously injured several others, the WNPS points out, adding that proper expertise is necessary to handle elephants.
Even after such a tragedy, the Army has not learned a lesson and has now again requested a new elephant calf from ETH after giving back the previous mascot to the DWC, the statement says. He now lives in the Ridiyagama Safari Park.
“If the hierarchy of the DWC agree to this, they are not only breaching the fundamental principles in the creation of the ETH, but also the very principle of conservation itself. This is in addition to betraying all those institutions and individuals who believe in the ideal of the ETH, and have contributed so much money to sustain it over the years,” the statement says.
Military Spokesman Nilantha Premaratne told the Sunday Times an elephant calf had been the SLLI’s mascot since 1961. The elephant has always been named ‘Kandula,’ he noted. “There have been seven elephants used as regimental mascots since 1961 and this will be the eighth.”
The elephant calf selected as the regimental mascot will only serve in the role for a limited number of years as it will have to be replaced when it reaches a certain age where it will no longer be possible for it to take part in parades and other military functions, Brigadier Premaratne said.
He confirmed that the Army had requested an elephant calf from ETH.
The process of choosing a mascot is a lengthy one, Brigadier Premaratne said. “The Army approached the Wildlife Ministry and the Dehiwala Zoological Gardens over the matter and they referred us to several places including the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage and ETH. Our officers inspected various elephant calves at the places they were referred to but it was at ETH that they found an elephant calf that they considered to be most suitable for the role of a regimental mascot,” the Brigadier added.
Cabinet approval will now be sought to remove the elephant calf from ETH to be used as the SLLI’s new mascot. Once Cabinet approves the request, a gazette will be issued announcing the new regimental mascot, the Military Spokesman explained.