Elephants in the black market

Business Standard
Geetanjali Krishna
December 16, 2006

I’d dearly love to own a beast of my own…,” said Raj Singh, describing his job as an elephant handler to me, adding, “except that most of us mahouts can’t afford them!” Which isn’t surprising, as a healthy female elephant (which Jaipur mahouts prefer, for they’re supposedly more docile) could cost more than a new Maruti van, he said. That’s why he was constantly on the lookout for animals going cheap.

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