Voices for Asian Elephants, an NGO, has given a life-size robotic elephant to Sree Sankaran Kovil in Gudalur, Nilgiris, which will replace the animals.
Robotic elephants are being provided to temples to end the practice of parading elephants for temple rituals and to end their suffering, according to Sangita Iyer, founding executive director of the organisation.
Annually, an average of 25 captive elephants die in Kerala. There are also instances of mahouts dying every year. The population of captive elephants had dropped to 397 from approximately 500 in 2019, she told mediapersons.
Robotic elephants would present a humane alternative to captive ones. It will alleviate the suffering of elephants, besides mitigating the risks faced by their caretakers. The organisation planned to seek the use of robotic elephants in various Kerala temples, she said.
The organisation is also into implementing strategic solutions to protect the endangered wild Asian elephant and to mitigate human-elephant conflict. It had recently acquired a four-acre private plantation in the south Nilambur forest as part of efforts to restore elephant habitats for the nearly 340 elephants in the region, she said.
B. Sudheesh Kumar, treasurer, Sree Sankaran Kovil, Devarshola, Gudalur, was present.
