Now it’s unlawful to feed Elephants in Bangkok

Many have eagerly been waiting to visit Bangkok and because of the past insurrections in the city, travellers had to curb their desire to visit this magnetic city and cancel their flights to Thailand. The elephants have always been an attraction for the foreign tourists in the city for the thrilling rides. Many tourists also enjoy feeding the elephants with sugarcane and bananas that are proffered by their handlers who intend to make some money from these pachyderms which seem to be less in demand for their skills.

However travellers to Bangkok now need to be wary about feeding elephants on the streets in view of the recent ordinance that has been issued by the metropolis’ authorities. Anyone found offering bananas or sugar cane to these tuskers, led by a handler or mahout would now be slapped a fine of 10,000 baht ($320 approx).

These awe inspiring creatures sometimes wreak havoc in the city causing damage to human life and property so the city administrators have issued the ordinance to maintain cleanliness and prevent destruction of lives and property. Once employed for logging and other activities, these mighty vegetarians have become jobless now with the mechanization and modernization of labour, so the owners loan these sisters of the “Big Five” to beg for food and money from tourists and locals.

The handlers sometimes dodge the officials by transporting the baby elephants by trucks to the suburbs to beg for food and money. The non-government organization called, Friends of the Asian Elephant, which takes care of mistreated and injured animals are happy about the ordinance in Bangkok and wish that the same measures be taken up in other cities as well.