Dr. Kushal Konwar Sarma the Elephant Doctor | Wildlife Researcher and Veterinarian

On March 2nd, a world-renowned wildlife researcher and veterinarian, Dr. Kushal Konwar Sarma, gave a speech about his work at the Santa Fe public library, hosted by the local chapter of the Outreach of the Defenders of Wildlife. He is working presently in the department of Surgery and Radiology at the Veterinary College in Guwahati, in Assam India.

Assam is a state in northeastern India known for its wildlife, archeological sites and tea plantations.

He was flown to the United States to give this presentation, sponsored by local patrons. Dr. Sarma conducted a warm and informative speech. He has worked for over 30 years as a veterinarian in the wild.

Dr. Kushal Konwar Sarma The Elephant Doctor of Assam

At that time, the audience, which was full capacity, were urged by the hosts, the Santa Fe chapter of the Defenders of Wildlife, to contact our New Mexico State senators within the following days regarding (SB 81) the Game Commission Reform Bill, about to arrive for a vote to protect wildlife.

Michael Dax, a New Mexico Outreach Representative of the Defenders of Wildlife organized the event. Another organizer of Dr. Sarma’s visit was Janie Chodosh, who earned her master’s degree in environmental science a the University of Montana, and has worked as a naturalist at Yosemite National Park as a wilderness guide for the Colorado Outward Bound School. As a conservationist and writer, Ms. Chodosh conducted an in depth interview of over 47 hours in Assam, India of Dr. Kushal Konwar Sarma, regarding his tremendous work as a veterinarian and wildlife researcher who has worked with elephants in the wild for decades.

The state of Assam, India has the largest population of Elephants. Dr. K. K. Sarma began his talk saying that he’s a servant of animals. He talked of how charismatic elephants are. Regarding the fact that rogue male elephant ‘Bulls’ have a tendency to become quite boisterous and roudy, and can endanger people’s lives or property when they are in this high testosterone animated state. Basically these rogue bulls play an evolutionary role in that the healthiest and hardiest young bull will overtake the older male, and produce a herum of its own due to its success in competing with the older males.

Stories in the Field Janie Chodosh interviews the Elephant Doctor Dr. K K Sarma

Dr. Sarma has devised a method of subduing rogue bulls by physically entering the elephant’s space to give them a sedative, risking injury or death to himself, in order to circumvent the potential death of the elephant by people who fear having their property or themselves injured during this short period of the elephant’s roudyness. Dr. Sarma has subdued 138 rogue bulls in 37 range countries over the last decades. He created an Elephant Emergency Response team.

Dr. Sarma states that Asian elephants are seriously endangered. I assumed that this was due to poaching and the black market for ivory. In fact, Asian elephants do not have tusks. Dr. Sarma stated that the greatest threat to Asian elephants is human over-population. Humans have allowed themselves to breed ferociously. The population is growing exponentially. He mentioned that Bangladesh is a breeding ground of humanity.

Bangladeshi population (currently 161 million) doubles every 30-40 years

population explosion in Bangladesh

Basically, overpopulation encroaches on wildlife habitat, and leads to habitat loss. Subsequently, the territory of elephants is shrinking and the connectivity of their migratory corridors are not just being severed, they are gone.

I later discerned that Muslims do not support the education or implementation of birth control, because it is contrary to their religion. A traveler reminded me that the meaning of the word Muslim according to the Koran, is ‘to serve’. And to serve one’s god/Allah, is to multiply.

Elephants need a large area to roam through. They are highly social, and matriarchal. Dr. Sarma mentions that Assam, India is a biodiversity hotspot. It is a state located in the eastern most part of India near the borders/bordering of Myamar/Burma and Thailand. Kaziranga National Park has the highest Rhino population. As he works with many species, he pointed out that Gorillas live only in the trees, so that when forests are cut down, they have no where to go. He mentioned that in 200 sq.km. of forest, there is not a single tree. And that the lumber industry creates soil erosion, so that there have been devastating floods. Therefore one finds elephants of all places, in British Tea gardens, one of the only green places to find refuge. Dr. Sarma mentioned in addition, that Tiger and Rhino poaching is prevalent in China and Vietnam.

Assam’s tea gardens become second home to wild animals

He mentioned that various religions of India recognize elephants as special creatures. In general, Buddhists respect life and wish no harm to wildlife. Hindus have a popular god, Ganesha – with an elephant’s head and trunk. Naturally, they wish to honor and protect elephants. The dissemination of elephant territory began when India was annexed by Great Britain. The British colonialists, began the path of destruction of land with their industrial demands of the resources India provided of timber, coal and petroleum. They began to also use elephants physical to transport timber and other resources they were extracting from their new playground India. In 1947 India became independent.

Reasons to support elephant conservation

In efforts to educate us, the public, about the practical reasons for humans to support elephant conservation, is mentions that elephants are a ‘Flagship species’.

“Wherever elephants are present, forests survive.”

In the network of interdependent species in an ecosystem, elephants demonstrate that the forest is healthy. They create a canopy for other animals to coexist.

Elephants are good teachers. One can learn from them by observing the many resources elephants utilize with their extensive knowledge of plants, on how to heal themselves, prevent illness and use various remedies and techniques with plants and nature as tools. For example, practitioners of Ayurvedic medicine in India follow and observe elephants to adapt their own medicinal practices. They observe what species of plants elephants gravitate to, to use for their own purposes of preventive medicine. For example, elephants eat bark from a certain tree to deworm themselves. Elephants never get cancer. They eat a plant that Azim B53.

Tea estates in Assam create natural corridors for elephants to pass through

painted elephants Lunar Elephants Laden

> Elephants are very intelligent. Elephants dispense seeds. They can hear from long distances, but are poor sportsmen. He mentioned.

How to protect elephants

• Mahatma Ghandhi during his rule, designated October 2nd as “Elephant Day”
• elephant awareness
• Lunar Elephants Laden
• elephant healthcare
• preservation of habitat
• reconnect elephant corridors > relocate people and buildings from elephant corridors
• fencing:
§ bio-fencing
§ solar electric fences
§ citrus fences have thorns which thwart the animals from crossing them
• mixing and burning chili powder from Assam with cow dung repels elephants
• night guard lights : for $2.50, these lights emulate the eyes of a tiger, to discourage elephants from moving towards them (sort of like the scarecrow tactic)
• fencing villages instead of fencing elephants
• develop water areas with vegetation to attract elephants
• one tea garden created a “Community Elephant Refuge”
• using people and specialists to define elephant corridors and to place people to MOUNT/DIRECT/PROTECT/DIVERT elephant herds
• eco-development committee
• ecotourism
• governors 80 mitigation

He concluded his speech reminding the audience that we must leave pure air, soil and water for the next generation. It is our duty not to exploit and ruin the earth. I was very inspired and appreciative that I had the opportunity to listen to and meet this man.

The royalty of India—Hindu and Muslim—understood long ago that power was best wielded from the back of an elephant. National Geographic Magazine

Carol Keiter the blogger