‘Don’t let elephants be used for begging’

Condemning the harassment of elephants who are used for begging on the city’s streets, the chairman of the committee to monitor animal welfare laws in Maharashtra, justice CS Dharmadhikari has written to state forest minister Patangrao Kadam to take action against the animal rights violations.

The letter dated October 23 states that using elephants in Mumbai, Thane, Vasai, Navi Mumbai and Kalyan for begging is a gross violation of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, and Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960.

The committee has instructed the department to take cue from the measures suggested by animal rights organisations, including Plants and Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), to improve the conditions of the harassed animals and submit a report of the actions taken.

“The Indian Elephant is an endangered species according to the schedule 1 under the Wildlife Protection (Amendment) Act, 2002. There are close to 10 mahouts in Mumbai alone who resort to begging with elephants in tow. We have requested the forest department to check if these mahouts have valid ownership certificates and transit permits for inter-state transport of elephants,” said Sunish Subramanian, coordinator, PAWS.