Riau Police Support Elephant Conservation with Delivery of 500 Pineapples to Sebanga Training Centre
The Riau Regional Police’s commitment to preserving Sumatran elephants is being realised through concrete actions. One such action is sending a truckload of pineapples to provide nutrition for the elephants at the Sebanga Elephant Training Centre (PLG) in Bengkalis.
On Tuesday afternoon (24 February 2026), the Head of the Pinggir Police Precinct, AKP Bayu Ramadhan Effendi, along with the Community Police Officer, Bripka Honcen Sijabat, visited the Sebanga PLG to meet the elephants. A total of 500 pineapples were delivered to the Sebanga PLG as food and additional nutritional support for the group of elephants under their care.
AKP Bayu stated that this activity is part of the Riau Police Chief’s programme to preserve wildlife, particularly Sumatran elephants. The Pinggir Police Precinct routinely sends food aid to the elephants every 10 days.
In this particular initiative, the Pinggir Police Precinct brought at least 500 ripe pineapples as additional food for the five elephants residing at the Sebanga PLG. However, the food is not given haphazardly, but follows strict animal health procedures.
“The additional food we provide consists of 500 ripe pineapples. It cannot be given all at once, even though it is rich in vitamin C and nutrients; it must be given gradually. If the elephants no longer want it, the process will be continued by the mahout,” explained AKP Bayu Ramadhan Effendi at the location on Tuesday (24 February 2026).
In addition to pineapples, the Pinggir Police Precinct usually also provides a variety of other fresh fruits, such as watermelons, bananas, and sugarcane, to maintain the nutritional balance of the animals.
Not only providing immediate assistance, the Pinggir Police Precinct, together with the Sebanga PLG, led by Irwansyah, are also taking sustainable steps. They have utilised an area of approximately 0.5 hectares to plant sugarcane specifically as a reserve of natural elephant feed.
This nutritional aid is delivered directly to the five elephants that are permanent residents of the Sebanga PLG, namely a male elephant named Sarma (40), and four female elephants named Sella (21), Rossa (29), Dora (15) and Puja (19).
Through this programme, the Pinggir Police Precinct hopes that the presence of the Polri (Indonesian National Police) will not only benefit humans but also contribute directly to the welfare of protected wildlife, while also strengthening the harmony between humans and nature in the jurisdiction of the Riau Regional Police.
(mea/jbr)