Delhi’s Forest Department officials are having sleepless nights these days as at least six elephants have been missing from the Capital for last few weeks. Taking cognizance of the incident, forest officials have launched serious exercise to ascertain the whereabouts of the elephants.
The department has issued show-cause notices to the mahouts whose elephants are missing mysteriously from their defined habitat. The owners of six elephants are not able to explain and provide a satisfactory reply as to what happened to the elephants, sources said.
“Why their licences should not be cancelled if they are unable to give satisfactory replies about the whereabouts of the elephants,” the notices said. According to official data of elephants available in the wildlife department, there are 14 elephants that have been housed in Sangam Vihar in South Delhi.
Top sources told The Pioneer that the department is also searching the missing elephants on the outskirts of the city. “The department has decided to carry out inspection of all elephants being kept under licence in the national Capital,” sources said. Wildlife officials file a final report after receiving the replies to the show-cause notices served on the mahouts.
Sources in the Government said that few complaints were received about the elephants being maltreated by their owners. The complainant alleged misbehaviour and bad upkeep of the elephants by their mahouts.
Though no cruelty was detected during the probe but it was found that six pachyderms are missing. There are apprehensions that the elephants were either sold or killed for their tusks.
“The forest and wildlife department has now issued notices to mahouts of missing pachyderms that why their licenses should not be cancelled if they are failed to give satisfactorily reply about the whereabouts of elephants. Their licenses would automatically cancel if they fail to give reply about where about of elephants,” said officials.
The elephants in Delhi belong to individuals who traditionally use them to earn a living. The elephants face health hazards from walking on tar roads for long hours carrying heavy loads which cause their foot pads to crack and blisters. The upkeep of these elephants are poor and in bad conditions. “Also, elephants require a constant supply of food, which is not catered for in their captive existence where they are fed twice or thrice a day,” officials said.
There were 24 elephants in the city till the year 2009. But their habitat near Thokar near ITO bridge got disturbed during the 2010 Commonwealth games.
As the games village and millennium bus depot took shape, the elephants were thrown out to far flung Sangam Vihar colony in the Outer Delhi area. The pachyderms from their natural habitat of Delhi are being ‘deported’ in a phased manner to neighbouring States.