'Don't let Rambo die alone like Shankar'

When 20-year-old Nikita Dhawan heard of Shankar’s death on Wednesday, it felt as if she had lost a close family member. For years, she had fought for the rescue of Delhi’s only African elephant, kept in solitary confinement at the city zoo. Now, she hopes Shankar’s passing will prevent a similar fate for Rambo, the only remaining African elephant in captivity at Mysuru Zoo .

Dhawan first saw Shankar four years ago on a trip to Delhi Zoo with her parents, and felt something shift inside her. The elephant, one of two brought to India in 1998 as a diplomatic gift from Zimbabwe, stood alone, his feet bound with metallic chains. His companion had died in 2001, and since then, the elephant named after former Indian president Shankar Dayal Sharma lived in isolation — a cruel fate for a species known for their social nature and desire for companionship.

“At that time, he was chained for 17 hours a day. He was also in the proximity of trains, which was very harmful to his ears. He was showing a lot of stressful behaviour,” she says.

Dhawan, whose love for wildlife stemmed from the many trips she made with her parents to sanctuaries, decided to channel her heartbreak into action. She started a non-profit called Youth for Animals to mobilise support and help Shankar get out of the zoo. Soon, other young volunteers joined, filed RTIs and sent letters to the Delhi Zoo and the Prime Minister. They also gathered video evidence of his physical and mental state. In 2022, they officially filed a public interest litigation in Delhi high court. “An inspection report for Shankar was ordered, but it was not done by an independent third-party. So, we didn’t feel like the results accurately reflected his condition,” Dhawan says. It was decided that Shankar would be kept at the zoo. Then, in March 2023, the Supreme Court increased the jurisdiction and powers of a high-powered committee led by Justice (retd) Deepak Verma, to conduct necessary checks and fact-finding exercises concerning wild animals, including those in captivity, across India. That brought hope to Dhawan, and she focused on getting transfer options ready for Shankar. “We knew something had to be done urgently. Elephants are very social animals, and you can’t just rip them out of the wild and make them live on their own. For nearly 13 years, Shankar had no visual or oral communication, even with the other Asian elephants at the zoo,” says Dhawan.

UK-based Aspinall Foundation, which runs multiple sanctuaries across Africa, agreed to shift the lonely elephant, and take care of the expenses too. However, the domestic authorities wanted to keep Shankar in India, Dhawan says. Hence, the search for a domestic alternative began. Last summer, she visited Vantara, the animal rescue arm of Reliance Foundation in Jamnagar, which expressed interest in housing Shankar alongside other African elephants. “We sent that option to the high-powered committee, but received no response,” she says.

Meanwhile, pressure began to mount on the Delhi zoo authorities. In Oct 2024, the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums suspended its license over concerns about Shankar’s living conditions. The body asked the authorities to either improve the conditions or relocate him. However, before that could happen, Shankar passed away at the age of 29, years before the species’ average life expectancy of 70. An inquiry has been ordered into the cause of the death, while zoo officials claim that Shankar showed no signs of illness and the collapse was sudden. “I feel that the zoo had the option and the funding to make a better life for Shankar, but they chose not to take it. I do believe his death was preventable,” Dhawan emphasises.
Currently studying at Stanford University, she hopes that the death will urge more Indian youngsters to speak up against the exploitation of animals for public entertainment. Her focus is now Rambo, the African elephant in Mysuru who has been alone since 2016 following the death of his father. “I really hope that Shankar’s death highlights the need to save Rambo before it’s too late.”