KARACHI: As the ailing elephant Noor Jehan drifted into eternal sleep at her enclosure, the authorities seemed to have learnt no lessons from her tragic death, expressing a desire to bring more exotic species to the zoo.

The 17-year-old ailing African elephant had undergone emergency treatment for health complications on April 5, but collapsed in her enclosure on April 22, leaving her longtime partner Madhubala, the other zoo elephant, alone.

However, the authorities stopped short of announcing an inquiry into the alleged incompetence of zoo staff that claimed her life.

“We want to improve the zoo according to international standards and bring more species like big cats and giraffes here. Since 2009, no new animal has been inducted in the zoo and there are several animals living without mates for a long time. We will engage with other zoos in the country to start an animal exchange programme so these animals could breed,” said Karachi Metro­politan Corporation (KMC) Admi­nistrator Dr Saifur Rehman while talking to journalists at the zoo on Monday.

Plans being discussed to bring more exotic species to zoo following ailing elephant’s death

Asked about a possible an inquiry into the elephant’s death, the administrator said the administration was well aware of the zoo’s problems. “We are working on all aspects and the foremost thing in this respect is staff’s training that we will arrange, either locally or by sending them abroad.”

Noor Jehan had been in critical condition for nine days after reportedly falling in her pond on the night between April 12 and 13 and suffered injuries.

The incident happened, the sources said, after she was left unattended in violation of the instructions of Four Paws, an international team of experts who detected a large hematoma, a mass of clotted blood often caused by an injury, and a ruptured perineal membrane, earlier this month and later supervised her treatment remotely.

Experts had cautioned that Noor Jehan was an intensive-care patient, requiring 24-h­our monitoring.

The poor animal had remained ill for months, leaving her partially paralyzed. The zoo staff was unable to diagnose and treat her illness or timely seek intervention from foreign experts.

Elephant sanctuary

The KMC administrator, meanwhile, shared a plan about building an elephant sanctuary at Safari Park. “We are in discussion with Four Paws’ experts on this. The place is needed to relocate Madhubala, the other zoo elephant, and to have more elephants in future,” he said, adding that relocation of the elephant was a gigantic task for which foreign experts were ready to help.

“While some members of Four Paws are already here, others will be coming tomorrow. A container would be built for Madhubala to have a smooth travel during the relocation process.”

Dr Amir Khalil, heading the Four Paws’ team, said the organisation wasn’t a transport company to shift animals from one place to another. “We don’t want to shift the elephant to another zoo or Safari. It should be shifted to an elephant sanctuary that should be built per international standard in Pakistan. This requires a huge place and infrastructure and we need to start work on this from today.”

His team, he said, would have a detailed assessment of Madhubala to see whether she was healthy and fit for relocation. He said an elephant in such conditions would barely live for three days, but Noor Jehan survived for nine days. “She was a fighter.”

On Sunday, a vets’ team led by Dr Khalil, who had arrived from Egypt, carried out a post-mortem examination of Noor Jahan, and collected samples of her vital organs including heart, lungs, liver, kidneys and spleen. The samples were later sent to the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Lahore. The examination report would be ready within two weeks.

“Noor Jehan was buried in a 14-foot-long and 12-foot-wide grave dug in her enclosure. Four tons of lime and disinfectants were poured and the elephant was buried using cranes,” stated a KMC press release.

Background

In August last year, the Four Paws’ team performed major tusk surgeries on Noor Jehan and Madhubala after an intervention of the Sindh High Court, which was approached by the Pakistan Animal Welfare Society (Paws) and activists worried over the animals’ plight.

In 2021, the team submitted a report to the court, recommending a series of steps for elephants’ welfare including their relocation from the zoo to Safari Park for better environment.

Noor Jehan and Madhubala, along with two other elephants currently housed in the Safari Park, were brought to Karachi from Tanzania in 2010 at a very young age.

Published in Dawn, April 25th, 2023