Around 32 acres of land procured by elephant owners in Kerala for starting the first superspecialty elephant hospital in the country is up for sale, though the State continues to report a rise in elephant deaths due to various ailments.
There has been a steady decline in the captive elephant population in the State with around 80% of the animals falling prey to ailments such as impaction of colon (locally known as Erandakettu) and foot ailments. The State is now home to only 393 elephants, a steep fall from the 521 recorded in the elephant census in November 2018. Despite this, Kerala, which is famous for its achievements in health-care indicators, has not made any sincere attempts to address elephant ailments.
P.S. Ravindra Nathan, secretary of the Kerala Elephant Owners’ Federation, told The Hindu that he spent around ₹23 lakh in an attempt to save his elephant, Durga Prasad, which was diagnosed with Erandakettu. The elephant died on April 22 after 45 days of treatment. The veterinary doctors could not locate the root of the infection, said Mr. Nathan.
