NEYYATTINKARA: As festive season begins, elephants’ days of sufferings also begin. When there are existing rules that night-time parading of elephants during festivals should not be allowed, elephants are being increasingly misused in other ways.

It was recently that a lorry laden with elephants was seized by Tamil Nadu Forest; the lorry also didn’t have permit. The vehicle was later sent back to Kerala.

The Tamil Nadu Forest officials tightened vehicle inspection after many elephants brought in such unsafe means and ways started running amok. Most of them were to found be starving and thirsty. Such elephants usually went mad and ran amok.

Following many such incidents, Tamil Nadu Forest department started seizing elephants being transported in lorries. For transporting animals from one state to another, Forest official’s permission letter is necessary. But this rule is often violated. Neyyattinkara has now become an important route through which elephants are transported.

Travel in blazing hot sun

An elephant that are always comfortable in cool and shady areas are made to stand still in the hot sun in the lorry with their legs and body tied tightly to the vehicle. For kilometres together they stand like this and travel.

When minimum 500 litre water intake is required for elephant every day, no water is given during the horrendous journey. Despite prevalence of law to prevent and punish such activities, very often police and forest department turn blind eye to these illegal activities.No one can enjoy car driving like Mammootty.