Kerala Elephants: Animal Cruelty and Its Laws

In the parallel world of social media, not all deaths are equal.

The heartbreaking story of a pregnant elephant cow who died in Kerala after eating a fruit bomb moved our collective conscience far more than, among other things, the equally heartbreaking stories of thousands of wild boars suffering the same fate in the same region.

510 elephants died of unnatural causes in five years

Nevertheless, the elephant story deserves our collective attention. Data shows that between 2014 and 2019, a total of 510 elephants in India died of unnatural causes. Of these, 333 elephants were killed by electrocution, 77 died in train accidents, and 71 were killed by poachers. Kerala ranks sixth in the country for unnatural elephant deaths (8.2%). Assam and Odisha together account for 40% of these deaths. This is despite the fact that both Assam and Kerala report nearly equal elephant populations. Yet the death of this one elephant in Kerala sparked so much more outrage than the 500 before it.

One of the main reasons is misinformation. For years, farmers in Kerala and Tamil Nadu have been using fruit bombs to kill wild boars that destroy their crops. There had been no public outcry over this until this Kerala elephant fell victim to one. By the time national television was still reporting on the incident, the fruit bombs had become a no-go. Villains were said to have deliberately given the bomb to the elephant. The truth apparently fell victim to emotional outbursts. Actors, sports stars, and even businesspeople suddenly became animal rights advocates — on social media, of course.

The 15-year-old female elephant suffered a broken jaw and drowned on 27 May in the Velliyar River after allegedly eating a pineapple filled with firecrackers. Such traps are commonly set up in India's forest fringe areas to prevent wild boars and other wild animals from damaging crops.

The Indian government launched Project Elephant in 1992 to support states in protecting the animal. A similar incident occurred in Himachal Pradesh, where the jaw of a pregnant cow elephant was also blown off after some villains tricked the animal into eating wheat laced with firecrackers.

Animal welfare laws in India barely enforced

In India numerous incidents of animal cruelty are frequently observed, of which practically none are reported or result in complaints or arrests, beyond animal rights advocates stirring up minor outrage on social media for a few days.Animal welfare laws are not strictly enforced in India. However, for more rigorous implementation and enforcement, it is important to become familiar with the existing animal welfare legislation.

Following the tragic death of the pregnant animal, Indian politician, animal rights activist, and founder of People for Animals, Maneka Gandhi, stated that "measures should be taken against all those suspected in Malappuram."

According to Asian News International, Gandhi also said: "The Kerala government has taken no action in Malappuram — it seems they are afraid. Every three days, an elephant is killed in Kerala. We have fewer than 20’000 elephants in India, and their numbers are declining rapidly."

Gandhi said the violent death of the elephant was due to the Kerala government's attitude toward recreational hunting of wild animals.

«Recreational hunting was banned in the country in 1972», said Gandhi. «The Kerala government has recently created incentives for recreational hunting. Poor people have started hunting wild boar to earn money. They are forced to kill wild animals because of the absurd and wicked policies of the state government.» More about hunting myths and the consequences of recreational hunting on wildbeimwild.com.