After years in chains, 20 broken elephants will finally walk free at Vantara—each step a quiet cry for stolen dignity.

India, has been conducted with the full consent of the current owners of the animals. The elephants will soon find their permanent home at Vantara, an environment that naturally mirrors their native habitat, where they will live chain-free and will never be forced into labor.

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Jamnagar, Gujarat: Vantara, a renowned rescue center for captive elephants and other wild animals, founded by the visionary philanthropist Anant Ambani, is preparing to welcome 20 rescued elephants—10 males, 8 females, 1 sub-adult, and 1 calf—freed from the exploitative logging industry in Arunachal Pradesh.

This rescue operation, carried out with the approval of the HighPowered Committee constituted by the Tripura High Court and entrusted by the Supreme Court of India, has been conducted with the full consent of the current owners of the animals. The elephants will soon find their permanent home at Vantara, an environment that naturally mirrors their native habitat, where they will live chain-free and will never be forced into labor.

The rescued elephants include individuals like Laxmi, a 10-year-old captive-born sub-adult who struggles to bear weight on her hind legs due to deep, untreated wounds and suffers from a fresh, painful 1-inch diameter hole piercing her sensitive right ear pinna—both inflicted during the brutal taming process to establish human dominance.

Maya, a 2-year-old captive-born calf, was rescued alongside her mother, Rongmoti, who endured large harness-induced lesions on her chest and buttocks from prolonged logging work. Ramu, a bull elephant, was found heavily restrained with both his forelegs and hindlegs tightly tethered together to control his 4–6 month musth period, resulting in immense physical and psychological distress.

Babulal, another bull elephant, suffered from a severely broken and bleeding tail, caused by a conflict with a wild bull elephant during foraging. Years of captivity had stripped him of the natural instincts needed to defend himself.

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The organization has secured all required documentation under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, including obtaining a No Objection Certificate from the Gujarat Forest Department and a Transport Permit from the Arunachal Pradesh Forest Department. The elephants will be transported in specially designed elephant ambulances, with the calf Maya traveling alongside her mother.