A zoo in Bhubaneshwar today celebrated the 'Elephant Day', to spread awareness about the pachyderms.
The elephants in the Nandankanan zoo were decked up for the event, which falls during the Wildlife Week that is observed in the first week of October annually.Several students flocked the zoo to participate in the celebrations. Students had lots of fun with learning about the jumbos.
"It (this day) makes us aware about the elephant and makes us sensitive towards their needs," said Subhadra, a student.
Abhishek, another student, said: "We saw elephants and played with them. They looked really beautiful."
Orissa has nearly 1,900 elephants in its forests, which are home to the largest number of elephants in the country.
However, due to the shrinking habitat, the animal crosses over to the human settlements and often comes into conflict with man.
Advertisement
At least 151 elephants were poached in the State between 1991-2001, while another 125 died of natural reasons or epidemics.
Advertisement
Home to 50,000 elephants a century ago, India now has just a little over 21,000 elephants.
Source-ANI
LIN/C