Mumbai: Days after the court-ordered relocation of a 36-year-old arthritic elephant from a Jain shrine in Kolhapur to Vantara in Gujarat ignited a public outcry and protests, the Jamnagar-based animal rescue and conservation centre on Wednesday expressed regret over the matter and proposed to set up a satellite rehabilitation centre for the pachyderm at Nandani in Kolhapur district.
Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, who held a meeting with Vantara’s chief executive officer, Vivaan Karani, on Wednesday, said the organisation has assured him that it would cooperate with the state government in the legal process to get the elephant, Mahadevi, back to Kolhapur.
“I had a detailed discussion in Mumbai with senior officials of the Vantara management. They have assured me that Vantara has decided to be a part of the petition that the Maharashtra government has resolved to file, seeking the safe return of the elephant Mahadevi to the Nandani Math. During the discussion, they informed me that they were only complying with the orders of the Supreme Court and had no intention of taking custody of Mahadevi on their own,” said Fadnavis on Wednesday.
Later in the day, Vantara issued a statement saying it would extend full support to any application filed by the Jain shrine and the Maharashtra government before the court requesting Mahadevi’s return to Kolhapur. “Subject to the court’s approval, Vantara will provide complete technical and veterinary assistance for her safe and dignified return,” the statement said.
The centre managed by the Reliance Foundation also stressed that at no stage did it initiate or recommend the elephant’s relocation, nor was there any intent to interfere with religious practice or sentiment. “If our involvement, despite being carried out solely under court directions, has caused any distress to the Jain community or the people of Kolhapur, we express our sincere regret. Michhami Dukkadam—if any hurt was caused through thought, word, or deed, knowingly or unknowingly, we seek your forgiveness,” the statement added.
Vantara also proposed to set up a satellite rehabilitation centre for Mahadevi, also known as Madhuri, in the Nandani area of Kolhapur, where the Jain shrine is located. The proposed facility will be developed in accordance with established animal welfare guidelines after consulting with experts and the consensus of the shrine, while aligned to international best practices in elephant care, the statement said.
According to Vantara, the proposed elephant rehab centre at Nandani will include a specialised hydrotherapy pond for joint and muscular relief, a larger water body for swimming and natural movement, a laser therapy and treatment room for physical rehabilitation, a covered night shelter for rest and protection, a lush open-space habitat for unrestricted movement without chains, a sand pit for environmental enrichment and natural behaviours, a fully equipped veterinary clinic for 24×7 medical care, a rubberised flooring platform for safe and comfortable resting, carefully formed mounds of soft sand to support sloped resting positions, which would aide Mahadevi’s recovery from foot rot and relieve pressure from arthritis.
The land for the proposed facility will be identified in consultation with the Jain shrine and the Maharashtra government. Upon receiving the necessary grants and permissions, Vantara’s team will begin the implementation in close coordination with relevant authorities, the organisation said. “This proposal is not intended for any credit or recognition of Vantara. We remain fully open and respectful to any alternative proposal the Jain Matha may wish to put forward, in accordance with the final directions of the honourable court,” the statement said.
After the meeting with Fadnavis, Vanatara’s Karani went to Kolhapur to meet the chief of the Jain shrine, Jinsen Bhattarak Mahaswami, who expressed his satisfaction with the proposal. “I welcome the approach of [Reliance Foundation director] Anant Ambani and give my blessing to him for returning Mahadevi and providing rehabilitation services at Nandani with the support of Vantara. After a legal process with the help of the Maharashtra government, Vantara and the forest department, Mahadevi will come back to Nandani,” he said.
Congress MLC Satej Patil, who participated in the protest demanding Mahadevi’s return to Nandani, welcomed the outcome of the meeting between the chief minister and Vantara, saying it was a victory of the unity of Kolhapur’s people. “I wholeheartedly welcome the decision of the Vantara management to rehabilitate Mahadevi, the elephant, in Kolhapur after the due legal process. Heartfelt thanks for everyone’s support and to team Vantara,” he said.
Mahadevi was with the Swastishri Jinsen Bhattarak Pattacharya Mahaswamy Sanstha at Nandani for over three decades. On July 16, the Bombay high court ordered her relocation to the Radhe Krishna Temple Elephant Welfare Trust in Jamnagar, managed by Vantara, after animal welfare organisations such as the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) underlined her poor health and argued that she was not getting proper care at the shrine.
The shrine challenged the order, but the Supreme Court on July 25 upheld it, after which the elephant was moved from Nandani to the Jamnagar facility. Following Mahadevi’s relocation, thousands of people in Kolhapur participated in protests demanding her return to the shrine.