Elephants to be given away

BANDAR LAMPUNG, Lampung: The Ministry of Forestry has scrapped the Rp 14 million ($6,000) transfer fee it charges for every tamed elephant from the Way Kambas Elephant Training School.

Eko Wardoyo, the chief of the ministry's Lampung Office, told Antara that the elephants will be given away to encourage more people to use the animals.

Graduates from the school have been trained to work on farms and forest projects as well as in the tourism industry.

Harjanto, the head of Tanjungkarang Nature Conservation Office, explained that anyone interested in owning an elephant must still shoulder the costs of transporting, maintaining and feeding the animal, and pay for the upkeep of an elephant tamer.

The Tanjungkarang Conservation Office is currently training two elephants ordered by the Yogyakarta Royal Court, eight by the Bali provincial administration and two each from Batu Raden and Banjar Negara (East Java). Last month, it sent eight elephants to PT Wira Karya Sakti, a forestry concession in Jambi. (emb)