At the concluding ceremony of International Elephant Race and Chitwan Elephant Festival in Sauraha on Friday, Yadav, who is also the government´s spokesperson, said Dhrube will be taken under control but will not be killed. [break]He claimed that Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai asked him to send out a clear message from Sauraha that “Dhrube will not be killed.”
Yadav´s statement comes at a time when animal rights groups have been decrying the local authorities´ decision to kill Dhrube, who reportedly trampled seven people to death in less than three months.
“PM Bhattarai has also assured of taking necessary steps in a bid to prevent any kind of physical loss from elephants in future,” he added.
The government´s decision not to kill Dhurbe has gained praise from animal rights groups, environmentalists and wildlife experts. They had submitted a memorandum to Yadav demanding that Dhrube not be killed.
Shankar Sainju, a conservation activist, said no animals should be killed.
Various eleven animal rights groups have signed the memorandum demanding rollback of the local authorities´ decision to kill Dhrube.
According to Ramprit Yadav, a former warden at the Chitwan National Park, it is not ethical for employees of the park to kill animals.
They have further drawn the attention of District Administration Office of Chitwan, CNP, National Trust for Nature Conservation and Biodiversity Conservation Centre, among others, stating that killing Dhrube would cast Nepal in a bad light.
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