Animal rights body PETA has launched a campaign against the "archaic and cruel elephant ride industry" at Amer Fort in Rajasthan.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India put up a billboard in Jaipur, displaying the message "Shackled, Beaten, and Abused. Be A Compassionate Traveller: Say No To Elephant Rides", the organisation said in a statement today.
"The wrenching image of a suffering captive elephant being viciously beaten by a group of men should be enough to convince any compassionate person never to sling a leg over an elephant's back," PETA India CEO Manilal Valliyate was quoted as saying in the statement.
"PETA India's billboard is the latest step toward our work to shut down the archaic and cruel elephant ride industry at Amer Fort."
The billboard follows the release of a report in April by the Animal Welfare Board of India that revealed shocking cruelty to elephants used for rides at Amer Fort and elephant village (Hathi Gaon) and prompted PETA India to file a petition before the Jaipur Bench of the High Court of Rajasthan seeking to end illegal elephant rides at Amber Fort and the elephant village in Jaipur.
According to the report, among the 102 working elephants examined at Amer Fort, many were found to be more than 50 years old. Ten tested reactive to tuberculosis (TB) test, which can be transmitted to humans, and 19 were observed to be visually impaired, rendering them unfit to give rides because of the danger posed to both themselves and the public.
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