Source: IANS
Guwahati, Sept 1: After the heart wrenching video of Joymala, an elephant from Assam being beaten and abused in a temple in Tamil Nadu has gone viral, the Assam Government stepped its efforts to bring back nine elephants back to the State.
As per sources, a team of the forest department from Assam will leave for Tamil Nadu tomorrow to rescue nine elephants including Joymala.
According to reports, several elephants from Assam are held captive in various parts of the country and are often ill-treated by the caretakers. Recently, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), released a video on Twitter showing Joymala, an elephant, being tortured by her mahouts inside a temple premises in Tamil Nadu. The video depicted the plight of elephants like Joymala had to undergo in the southern State.
Meanwhile, social media was enraged at the kind of treatment the pachyderms were given. Taking cognisance of the matter, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma directed the forest department to bring the pachyderms back to the State.
Sources revealed that the Assam Government has been in touch with the Tamil Nadu government for the last one year and has also applied for the return of not one but nine jumbos back to the State.
M K Yadava, Assam's principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF) has also written to the Tamil Nadu chief secretary regarding the return of the pachyderms. However, no positive response from the Tamil Nadu government halted the process of transportation of the elephants.
Although, it is not possible to bring the elephant from the temple without the cooperation of the government, the Tamil Nadu government has sought money from the Assam government to bring back the elephant, said sources.