Reliance Foundation, Reliance Industries’ (RIL) philanthropic arm, has launched Vantara, an initiative to rescue and rehabilitate injured and abused animals in India and abroad.
Vantara (meaning star of the forest) was conceptualised by Anant Ambani, who is a director on the boards of RIL and Reliance Foundation. The initiative focuses on creating class animal conservation and care practices including healthcare, hospitals, research and academic centres.
It also focuses on integrating advanced research and collaboration with reputed global universities and organisations such as the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF).
The rehabilitation programme, which has been in the works for the last few years, has rescued more than 200 elephants, 300 large felines such as leopards, tigers, lions and jaguars, over 300 herbivores such as deer and over 1,200 reptiles such as crocodiles, snakes and turtles, as well as birds. It has rehabilitated key species such as rhinos, leopards and crocodiles.
Spread over 3,000 acres, the project is housed within the green belt of RIL’s Jamnagar Refinery Complex in Gujarat.
“What started as a passion for me at a very young age has become a mission now, with Vantara and our brilliant and committed team. We are focused on protecting critically-endangered species native to India. We also want to restore vital habitats and address urgent threats to species and establish Vantara as a leading-edge conservation programme,” Anant Ambani said.
“Some of India’s and the world’s top zoological and medical experts have joined our mission and we have been blessed to receive active collaborations and guidance of government bodies, research and educational institutions,” he added.
Vantara aims to partner with the Zoo Authority of India and other relevant government organisations to improve the over 150 zoos in India in terms of training, capacity building and animal care infrastructure.
It has an elephant care centre with shelters, scientifically-designed day and night enclosures, hydrotherapy pools, water bodies and jacuzzis for treating arthritis in pachyderms. A 25,000-square-feet hospital for the jumbos is equipped with portable x-ray machines and laser machines among others.
For other wild animals rescued from circuses or congested zoos, a rescue and rehabilitation centre of over 650 acres has been created on the premises. With a staff strength of about 2100, the centre has rescued about 200 leopards from all over India which had suffered injuries in road accidents or man-wildlife conflicts.
