The Forest Department had handed two elephants brought to Gazipur Safari Park, Samrat and Niharkoli, back to their owners' custody on several conditions, including that the animals would not be used to extort money from people. Because the owners broke those conditions, the two elephants have been brought back to the safari park on the minister's order.
Tareq Rahman, officer-in-charge of Gazipur Safari Park, gave the information on Tuesday, 25 August.
Taken back from Moulvibazar
He said that on the order of Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Abdul Awal Mintoo, the female elephant Niharkoli was taken into Forest Department custody on Monday, 24 August, from the Kamalganj area of Moulvibazar, and the male Samrat Bahadur from an area next to the Shilua tea garden in Juri upazila.
Niharkoli was brought to the safari park at Sreepur, Gazipur, on an open truck at about 4am on Tuesday, and Samrat at 10am. The park's wildlife veterinarian Hatem Sajjat Md Zulkar Nain and other vets then examined the two elephants. The medical board formed to treat the park's animals and birds has also been asked to help; its members will carry out full health checks and report on the elephants' health.
Why they were at the park
Samrat was rescued and brought to the safari park after he crushed mahout Nazrul Islam to death in Kotalipara, Gopalganj, on 24 September 2024. Niharkoli was rescued from Bhulta in Narayanganj on 31 August the same year. According to the Forest Department, there were allegations that the elephants were being used to collect money from people and were being abused.
Two elephants, including Raja Bahadur, died in the park's elephant shed on 6 and 7 August. On 24 May this year, a four-year-old elephant, Joyita, attacked the chained 10-year-old Raju Bahadur in the shed, breaking one of his legs. A medical board was formed, a foreign specialist was brought from Thailand and doctors in Sri Lanka were consulted, but despite every effort the elephant died on 7 August.
Another elephant at the park died after a bacterial infection, and one more died on 6 August. After that, Samrat and Niharkoli were returned to their owners' custody on conditions. When the custodians broke those conditions, the two elephants were taken back into Forest Department custody on Minister Abdul Awal Mintoo's order.
Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.
Comments
(0)