Stop gift of Indian elephant to Armenia

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's intervention has been sought by an international wildlife and animal welfare charity to prevent transfer of a Bangalore based elephant to Armenia.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's intervention has been sought by an international wildlife and animal welfare charity to prevent transfer of a Bangalore based elephant to Armenia.

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"The Born Free Foundation urges the Indian Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh to reconsider this gift and to call the move off," its CEO Will Travers said here last night.

He said the Foundation, founded by actors Virginia McKenna and Bill Travers, believed that there were many other ways of improving relations between New Delhi and Yerevan which would not involve the potential suffering and possible demise of animals.

Virginia McKenna, OBE, who starred in the classic 1966 movie "Born Free", said "It is deeply disheartening that the custom of using animals as diplomatic gifts still continues. Animals are not inanimate objects and certainly deserve to be treated with due respect for their nature and needs.

"The proposed removal of an elephant from Bangalore to Yerevan Zoo highlights the urgent need for this issue to be addressed on an international basis, and I can only hope that it is not too late to change hearts and minds. Not only for this elephant, but in future no more animals should be used in this way."

According to information received by the Foundation, the Elephant is due to leave Bangalore and is destined for Yerevan. The exchange is in the form of a diplomatic gift consigned by the Indian Prime Minister to his counterpart in Armenia, the foundation cliamed.