Dear Donors,

We write to you with heavy hearts, as we were all set to bring Lakshmi to her permanent home to our Elephant Care Facility in  Malur, Karnataka as decided by the Animal Welfare Board of India, and the concerned Forest Dept. However, the situation at the transit centre, which is a small farm run by a local community member acting as a caretaker agency , and was only to be used as a holding place for Lakshmi, till we received the transport orders, to take her to our rescue centre, has taken an unfortunate turn. The local citizen, who owns the transit centre, is now refusing to let us take Lakshmi, since he wants to run public viewing programmes and earn from her presence there. Please note, that all the expenses for Lakshmi's care, medical treatment, salary of her mahout has all been paid for by WRRC, and the contribution of the transit space owner, has been only to provide the space.

It is not a suitable space for her in the long term, and it was only brought into the picture, as at the time of her initial rescue, she was not well enough to undertake the long travel to Karnataka. Today,  she cannot be kept in isolation as the caretaker agency intends to do, nor be used for commercial purposes; especially when we have our family of rescued elephants waiting to meet her and make her a member of their herd. Elephants need space and opportunities to socialise with their own species, for their emotional, mental and physical well-being.

Lakshmi was examined by government veterinary practitioners recently and there is an endorsement to the effect that her condition has improved immensely after the treatment we have provided and that her pain has reduced. The report further states that the elephant will require steady treatment on a regular basis and that owing to the inability of her original custodian to take care of the elephant and to provide for the finances in relation to her medical treatment, he had approached WRRC. In fact, initially, we had been given permission to move her to Karnataka right away, but since a senior Veterinary Practitioner, Dr. P. Ramachandran conducted a follow up examination of the elephant on 07.06.2016 to check the ability of the elephant to be transported to Bangalore and found that at the time, she would not be able to undertake walking long distances and would not be prepared for long transportation. On receiving this information about her medical condition, WRRC issued an E-Mail to the Forest Dept of Tamil Nadu among others, requesting for a change in the travel plan of the elephant, and asked for permission to shift her to Rajapalyam under the care of a local caretaker agency, so that the urgent medical needs of the elephant can be taken care of, until such time it is ready to be transported to the care of WRRC, Karnataka. This goes to show the bona fide intention of WRRC to ensure that the welfare of the elephant is prioritized.  Thereafter, given the urgency of the medical requirements of the elephant, the FD, TN issued a revised transit permit dated 10.06.2016 for the elephant to be transported on a short term basis to the caretaker agency until such time its health condition improves and is fit for travelling to the Elephant Care Facility of WRRC. Thereafter, the elephant was shifted to the care of the caretaker agency where the elephant is currently sheltered. It was WRRC that collaborated with the agency for the transfer of the elephant for a short term basis. WRRC then supervised the medical care of the elephant though its veterinary doctor, Dr. P. Ramachandran, who was taking care of the medical needs of Lakshmi, who was sheltered at the premises of the caretaker agency.  The WRRC has been sending frequent updates regarding the health of the elephant to the TN Forest Department.

Last year, a Veterinary Certificate dated April 2017 and the No-Objection Certificate dated May 2017, the FD, TN issued a Form-B Transit Permit dated May 2017, for the elephant to be moved to the care of the WRRC, from the care of the caretaker agency, as she was now able to travel. Since the concerned Forest Department is also not equipped to take care of the medical requirements of the Elephant nor do they have any rehabilitation facility to house the elephant as Lakshmi cannot be kept in Forest Camps but requires specialized centres to take care of the special needs of the Elephant. Hence, the health condition of the elephant will further deteriorate if the elephant is transferred to the custody of the Forest Department and it is for this reason that the elephant was proposed to the transferred to the custody of WRRC, which is equipped to take care of the elephant. WRRC has been treating Lakshmi in the custody of the caretaker agency for a period of one year and is responsible for its wellbeing.

We have to now go to court, against the caretaker agency, who has proven to be untrustworthy of the trust we placed in them , and is presently mobilising local support with the cooperation of Lakshmi's mahout to ensure , we are unable to move her, despite orders from the authority for the same. We are hopeful that the matter will be resolved and we will have justice for Lakshmi.

We will keep you updated on the proceedings of the case.

We thank you for your continued patience, support and encouragement and are hopeful that we can give you a positive update very soon.

Thank You
Warmly
Team WRRC

Dear Donors,

This Ganesh Chaturthi, we bring you a very special initiative.

This is a beautiful poem written and narrated by Geeta Gopalakrishnan, a true friend and supporter of WRRC's Captive Elephant Welfare Programme. She is joined by iconic actor Waheeda Rahman, veteran television star Ram Kapoor, well known conservationist and founder of Sanctuary Asia magazine Bittu Sehgal and by Maneka Gandhi, Cabinet Minister for Women & Child Development and a long time advocate for the rights of animals - who add their voices in a plea to save our captive elephants.

Watch Poem Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cx6BsDtARf0

We are helping 2 more elephants like Lakshmi, the link to contribute to them is: 
https://milaap.org/fundraisers/HelpSaveElephants

Details on WRRC’s Captive Elephant Programme are available at this link : http://wrrcindia.org/captive-elephant-welfare/

Lakshmi is still waiting for the final inspection report and green signal from Tamil Nadu Forest Dept, but we are with her this Ganesh Chaturthi at the interim farm, giving her lots of treats, and love and assuring her that she will be on her way to her forever home very soon!

May Lord Ganesh bless you with health & happiness in thanks for your generosity in helping his own avataar – the Elephant!

Thank You for your patience, encouragement and generosity of spirit!
Team WRRC

Dear Donors,

We are delighted to be able to share the good news, that Lakshmi has managed to clear most of the Forest Department checks, there is one last pending check which is going to be done by a senior Forest Dept. veterinarian in Tamil Nadu.

Unfortunately, the Tamil Nadu Forest Dept. has decided against sending Lakshmi to our Malur Centre to join Aneesha, where we had already prepared her enclosure. They have instead decided she is to go to our Marakanam Elephant Care Facility in Tamil Nadu itself.

There she will be joining three of our elephant family members, named Sandhya, Jayanthi and Indu. Below is a photo of the trio, who are awaiting Lakshmi's arrival as eagerly as we are.

Her enclosure here has been made ready as well. We will keep you updated as soon as we get the final go ahead from the Forest Department.

We thank you for having been so patient with us, and sending your love, prayers and encouragement to Lakshmi, who is, we are sure, quite fed up of being stuck in the interim farm and is waiting to explore the lush 13 acres of the Marakanam facility, which will be her forever home!!  

We too are waiting to take her to her forever home and finally see her becoming part of a herd and enjoying her life, the way an elephant is meant to. We are doing everything we possibly can to speed up the process, so pls bear with us.


Thank You
Team WRRC