- The splendid sight of the gigantic and majestic elephants trudging along in hordes cannot be explained in simple terms. It must be experienced firsthand to come out with a suitable narration befitting the gentle animal. Of course, the Indians are aware of how elephants hold such a significant position in our collective psyche right from being worshipped as Lord Ganesha with an elephant head to being considered an intelligent animal evoking awe and amazement alike. None of the auspicious occasions, endeavours, and initiatives commence without Lord Ganesha receiving the first salutation from the people concerned. Yes, the first worship is always reserved for the elephant god. Such is the ubiquitous presence and acceptance of elephants in India.
PC: Gondwana University
- Yes, the Indian government has endeavoured to ensure elephants are provided with every way and means of natural habitat to lead lives unencumbered by growing human influence. Of course, the animals must endure human greed in the form of surreptitious poaching activities is a given fact, but the government’s efforts are equally to be applauded in keeping the nefarious elements at bay courtesy of stringent measures. Indisputably, pachyderms have as much of a right to walk the earth as humans do. As such, India must do a better job of conserving them. It’s not for nothing that the elephant’s memory is much storied. Relative to the size of the brain, its hippocampus, responsible for recall, is about 40% larger than that of a human being.
- It is revealed that Like us, elephants have complex societies, they educate their young and mourn their dead. There is still so much we don’t know about these co-earthers. A recent discovery is that they have rumbling vocalization akin to individual names. While conservation should not be dependent on how much we can anthropomorphize a species, recognizing human-like capacities in elephants surely increases the imperative to protect them. The Wildlife Institute of India’s finding – India’s elephant population has declined almost 20% since 2017 – is therefore particularly dismaying. There’s the failure of conservation, and there’s the special place elephants have in Indian culture as mentioned above. It’s a conflict that deserves holistic addressing.
PC: Weather
- Our art, literature, and customs are full of elephant references, stories, and metaphors. Yes, there are caveats around the WII finding viz changes in counting methods and a delay in collecting Northeast data. But those human activities – including assaults on forests and fragmenting of wildlife corridors – are taking a toll on jumbo habitat are as well-known as apathetic official responses to such tragedies. Elephant deaths by electrocution and trains make headlines regularly – govts forget regularly, too. India must judge itself by correspondingly high standards, unlike other countries. We must recognize that other species are special. Not just because they enhance our lives. But because their right to be here doesn’t depend on our endorsement. Time to act.
