The two female elephants at Iskcon temple in Nadia’s Mayapur, one of which had killed a mahout on April 6 evening, will be shifted to a sanctuary, the authorities have decided.
Bishnupriya, 16 and Lakshmipriya, 30, would be rehabilitated together.
“On April 10, during a meeting of the Iskcon Mayapur executive board, or MEB, it was decided that for the safety of the devotees, staff, and pilgrims to Mayapur, the two elephants Bishnupriya and Laxmipriya will be permanently shifted out of Mayapur,” Radharaman Das, vice-president, Iskcon, Kolkata, said on Saturday.
”Discussions are being held with three different sanctuaries to determine
which is the best facility for the elephants. A decision should be finalised in the
next few days, and the elephants will be transported to the best sanctuary possible after the necessary arrangements are completed,” said Das.
Bishnupriya had pushed and pressed 27-year-old Samudra Rava, the mahout of Lakshmipriya against a wall, leading to his death on the evening of April 6.
Samudra was taken to a local hospital where doctors declared him dead. He hailed from Kamrup in Assam.
Ajay Rabha, the mahout of Bishnupriya, had jumped off the elephant’s back to save Samudra but fractured his leg.
State forest department officials and elephant experts had said that the two elephants, which were staying at the enclosure at Iskcon, Mayapur for many years, should not be separated. If separated, it could be stressful for both, they had said.
After the incident, Bishnupriya had been calm and was found bonding with Lakshmipriya using the trunk.
“We had proposed that if the two elephants are kept at Iskcon, Mayapur, then a committee should be formed to monitor their physical and mental conditions,” said a forest department official on Saturday.
The committee would include forest officials and a veterinary expert.
“However, if Iskcon has decided to rehabilitate the two elephants then there is no need for such a committee. We will facilitate the rehabilitation if our help is sought,” said the official.
Mayapur is around 140km north of Kolkata.
