Rescued From Haryana's Streets in 2013, This Elephant Spent 12 Years Building a Herd of Her Own. |
Every evening, Erika sets the pace.
She walks a familiar route through the forested grounds of the Elephant Rehabilitation Centre in Ban Santour, Haryana, and the herd follows — Lilly and Jasmine staying close, moving at her speed, pausing when she pauses. For the caretakers who have known Erika for over a decade, watching her lead is still something worth stopping for.
Because not long ago, she could barely stand without pain.
From Haryana's streets to a forest sanctuary
Erika is around 65 years old. For most of her life before 2013, she walked not through forest but through traffic — a begging elephant on the roads of Haryana, covering long distances daily in noise and heat, lifting her trunk on command while strangers tossed coins. Her feet, built for forest floors, bore the strain of decades on asphalt and concrete. Her body was malnourished, her joints compromised.
When Wildlife SOS and the Haryana Forest Department tracked her down, her owner attempted to hide her as rescue officials approached. The team stayed with it, and within hours, Erika was loaded onto a transport vehicle and brought to the ERC — a 400-acre sanctuary run by Wildlife SOS in collaboration with the Haryana Forest Department, designed specifically for elephants who have survived captivity.
She was not the only one........