Madras High Court Directs Forest Department to Stop Engaging NGOs to Treat Elephants

The Madras High Court in Chennai has issued an interim order directing the Tamil Nadu forest department to stop engaging non-governmental organisations to treat captive elephants in its custody.

A special bench of Justices N Sathish Kumar and D Bharatha Chakravarthy passed the interim order. The decision came in response to a public interest writ petition moved by animal welfare activist S Muralidharan.

In his petition, Muralidharan sought a direction to the Tamil Nadu forest department to cancel and withdraw the permission previously granted to Wildlife SOS, an NGO, to operate its mobile veterinary clinic in the state. The petition also sought to direct the government to strengthen and establish its own comprehensive veterinary infrastructure and specialised mobile elephant healthcare facilities for treating captive elephants under its jurisdiction.

The petitioner argued that the state government must maintain institutional independence when dealing with Schedule I wildlife, particularly captive elephants. According to the petition, the state should develop its own state-of-the-art veterinary hospitals, mobile treatment units, diagnostic facilities, and trained veterinary personnel. The petitioner stated that the government should not depend on private organisations whose statutory status or functioning may itself be the subject of dispute.

Furthermore, the petitioner stated that the permission granted by the principal chief conservator of forests and chief wildlife warden to Wildlife SOS deserves to be withdrawn. This withdrawal should remain in place until the competent authorities verify compliance with all statutory requirements and satisfy themselves regarding the legal eligibility of the organisation to undertake such veterinary activities.

As a result of the interim order, the NGO Wildlife SOS is temporarily stopped from operating its mobile veterinary clinic for captive elephants in Tamil Nadu. The order pushes the state government to establish and strengthen its own independent, state-of-the-art veterinary infrastructure instead of relying on private organisations.