Aged 16, he appealed to the judges to free the lone African elephant kept in "cruel" conditions in the Delhi Zoo
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves himA 16-year-old Indian student appealed to judges to free the lone African elephant kept in "cruel" conditions at the Delhi Zoo, which has been looking for company since the death of her partner 16 years ago.
Her name is Nikita Dhawan, she is 16 years old and with a classmate of hers she founded the animal rights association Youth For Animals, she presented a petition, which has collected almost 52 thousand signatures, to the High Court of Delhi so that zoo transfers the elephant Shankar to a sanctuary in Africa, where he can relate to other individuals of his own species.
She has secured support from the UK-based conservation charity, the Aspinall Foundation, for which Boris Johnson's wife Carrie works. The foundation has offered to relocate the animal if the zoo agrees to release it and if it is fit enough to travel.
#FreeShankarDelhiZooA lone African elephant Shankar trapped at the Delhi zoo since 1998. A diplomatic gift to India…
Posted by Youth For Animals – YFA on Monday, October 4, 2021
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Who is Shankar?
In 1998, a 26-month-old male African elephant was presented as a diplomatic gift from Zimbabwe to India. It was named "Shankar" in honor of the ninth president of India, Dr. Shankar Dayal Sharma. Shankar, now over 24, has lived his entire life in the Delhi Zoo (National Zoological Park, NZP). Since 2005, the year of the death of his only companion Bombai, Shankar has lived in isolation.
Physical and mental condition of Shankar
Shankar is chained for 17 hours a day and does not have enough room to move when released. Just like humans, elephants are social beings and suffer from severe stress when placed in isolation. Shankar consistently demonstrates stereotypical behaviors such as swaying and banging his head, clear stereotypical behaviors brought about by his captivity.
What do you ask
Delhi Zoo (NZP) is being asked to transfer Shankar to a wildlife refuge or sanctuary where there are other African elephants.
"Having received no response (from the zoo, ed), we filed a dispute of public interest in the High Court of Delhi, which ruled on January 3, 2022. The honorable admitted our case and also ordered the litigants to consider our inquiry. The next hearing is set for March 9, 2022 ”, explain Nikita Dhawan and Nandika Karunakaram.
To sign their petition click here
Fonti: Youth for animals, change.org
