New Elephant Transit Home to Be Established in Polonnaruwa

COLOMBO (News 1st): A decision has been taken to establish a new Elephant Transit Home in Kalahagala, Polonnaruwa.

District Secretary of Polonnaruwa Sujantha Ekanayake said that approximately 15 hectares of land belonging to the Department of Forest Conservation will be allocated for this purpose.

The District Secretary mentioned that the objective of this initiative is to protect the lives of elephant calves that become separated from their mothers or get injured due to various disasters, including human-elephant conflict, floods and train accidents.

The Kalahagala area was selected for the Elephant Transit Home following a survey conducted by an expert committee comprising veterinarians, officers from the Department of Forest Conservation, and public representatives.

Currently, Sri Lanka's only Elephant Transit Home is in Udawalawe .

Sujantha Ekanayake noted that transporting wild elephant calves from the Northern and North Central provinces to Udawalawe takes between 7 to 9 hours.

Transporting injured elephant calves over such long periods poses a significant risk to their lives.

The District Secretary further added that establishing this Elephant Transit Home will help boost tourism in the Polonnaruwa District and create job opportunities for local residents through services such as providing food required for the elephant calves.