Reports about the ‘sale of Noor Jehan’s meat’ are not true: KMC

KARACHI: The Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) has denied that the meat of the elephant Noor Jehan, who died at Karachi Zoo after a long illness, was sold after her death.

In a short tweet, the group in charge of city services said that there was “no truth” to these rumors.

“The rumor that the zoo’s elephant Noor Jahan’s meat is being sold on social media is not true,” said a statement from Karachi Administrator Dr. Saif-ur-Rehman.

It made clear that the female tusker’s autopsy and burial had been done with the help of foreign experts and vets.

KMC said that people from the foreign group Four Paws, which works to help animals, were also there.

“KMC has pictures and videos of every part of the female elephant’s postmortem and burial,” the statement said.

The municipal company also said that people who spread these kinds of rumors would be taken to court.

“Spreading rumors that Noor Jehan’s meat was sold is a sneaky way to make KMC and the country look bad,” it said, adding that the source of these rumors was being watched.

Noor Jehan, an elephant who was 17 years old, died because of long-term health problems that were made worse by a lack of care at the zoo. She was buried at Karachi Zoo last Sunday.

Before Eidul Azha, Madhubala is going to be moved to Safari Park.
The other female elephant kept in captivity with Noor Jehan, Madhubala, is likely to be moved to Safari Park before Eidul Azha, according to The News. This is because of the harsh criticism and complaints about Madhubala’s living conditions.

The person in charge of Karachi said that Madhubala would be moved from the Karachi Zoo before Eidul Azha. On Friday, the statement was made at a meeting about the Karachi Zoo and the Safari Park. Sindh Minister for Local Government Syed Nasser Hussain Shah was in charge of the meeting.

Additional Chief Secretary Najam Ahmad Shah, Karachi Administrator Dr. Syed Saifur Rehman, Four Paws team head Dr. Aamir Khalili, Katrina Hussain, Sabina Dawood, Dr. Javed Memon, zoo director Kunwar Ayub, Owais Khan Advocate, and other Four Paws team members and officers were also at the meeting.

Rehman said that a plan for traffic had been made, and it would be carried out based on the criteria and processes set by the Four Paws team. He said that 20 acres had been set aside for the Safari Park so that big animals could live there.

On Thursday, blood samples were taken from three tigers and one tiger at the Karachi Zoo. Elephants were also starting to learn new skills. The same way would be used to scan each animal. The administrator said that Noor Jehan would be the name of the enclosure that would be made for Madhubala.

During the meeting, Shah said that every safety step would be taken to move the animal from the Karachi Zoo to the Safari Park.

He said that a plan to build an elephant refuge in the Safari Park will be sent to the Sindh government, and that all of the animals will also be scanned.

The provincial minister said that the Sindh government helped animals in many ways and that they were sad about the death of elephant Noor Jehan.

He said it was great that the Four Paws team worked with the zoo’s managers to help the sick elephant get better. He hoped that this foreign organization would continue to help them in the future, so that if animals got sick, they could be treated with methods that are accepted around the world.

Minister Nasir Shah said that he had proposed building a 1,000-acre safari park on the Super Highway and that it should also be looked at so that a big safari park could be built for the people of Karachi.

He also said that care should be taken of the elephants Sonia and Malika, who are already at the Safari Park, and that they should be fully checked.

It was also decided that the next step would be decided at the second meeting of the task group, which would take place on May 4.