Killing and torturing of animals around the world has been drastically increased in the last few years. In Africa’s Botswana more than 350 wild elephants were found dead in the last two months. It is being assumed that their death may have either been caused due to being infected with COVID-19, or it maybe something to do with the wildlife mafia. So far the reason of death has not been cleared despite two months of investigation.
Africa is the biggest home to wild animals, but increasing number of mysterious deaths of wild life raise a number of questions relating to their conservation and measures taken by the government. Recently, the brutal killing of an elephant and a monkey in Kerala and Telangana present the devastatingly inhuman atrocities perpetrated on wildlife. Every year thousands of elephants are killed by mafias around the world for their teeth, skin etc. In Zimbabwe, hundreds of elephants were killed for their tusks and teeth. In 2018, 90 elephants were killed in Botswana and their teeth were missing, they were brutally taken out.
Botswana Wildlife Department said “ The dead bodies of 280 elephants are verified out of 350; we are observing other animals too. Due to COVID-19 the process of testing the sample is slow.”
Botswana wildlife is popular around the world and contributes around 12 percent to the GDP of the country. But the country is failing to conserve its animals. The newly appointed government has removed the ban on wildlife hunting.
The country is shelter to 15,000 elephants. But due to massive hunting and presence of mafia and smugglers ,massive killing of wild animals are reported every year.
The conservation of wildlife animals is a critical challenge around the world. African wildlife is severely affected. According to a report, in the African continent, 37 countries are shelter to elephants but in last few years their number is drastically falling down. It is reported that more than 2 lakhs elephants were killed by smugglers in last two years in the Sawana region.
