Celina Asks Mumbai Zoo To Transfer Elephants

Bollywood actor and animal activist Celina Jaitly has fired off a letter to the Central Zoo Authority (CZA) asking the agency to act in accordance with a recent ban and immediately transfer of two elephants, Laxmi and Anarkali, from the Byculla Zoo in Mumbai to a sanctuary.

Jaitly also asked the CZA to expedite the relocation of all captive elephants who are currently used in Indian zoos and circuses. The plea by the Bollywood actress comes after Laxmi killed a zoo visitor here last week.

Elephants who are incarcerated and kept shackled in chains often become frustrated and angry and sometimes lash out, an official of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India said. A month before the fatal incident, PETA India had asked the CZA to relocate the two aging and ailing elephants.

Jaitly's letter says PETA's argument that the Byculla Zoo is not capable of meeting the complex needs of elephants, is valid.

"Laxmi and Anarkali are often kept chained in small, separate enclosures and denied the freedom of movement and companionship," she said.

The opportunity to walk freely and interact with other elephants is essential for the animals' physical and emotional health. Elephants used in zoos and circuses throughout India are denied what they need to thrive: space to roam, water to bathe in and the enriching environment of a herd, she said.

"In Mumbai and other parts of India, elephants in captivity are kept in cruel conditions," Jaitly said.

"It breaks my heart to see them separated from their families as babies and sentenced to a lifetime of boredom, loneliness and abuse. I applaud the CZA's decision that a zoo or circus environment is wholly inadequate for elephants."  "Laxmi and Anarkali are stressed, sick and depressed," PETA India's Dharmesh Solanki said.

"The CZA must realise that for every day that it delays the transfers, these gentle giants must endure another day of suffering," he added. PTI