Remembering Noor Jahan for entertaining visitors

KARACHI:

I may have scant and faint childhood memories of Karachi Zoo, but when I was assigned as TV reporter to report on the health of "Noor Jahan", the ailing (now dead) elephant, at the zoo on March 13, I readily accepted and drove off with my camera crew.

Initially, I wasn't allowed to see Noor Jahan which lent credence to rumours that the administration wanted to hide the terrible condition of the elephant. After a couple of hours, the administration let me into the small enclosure to see the 17-year-old African elephant. She looked much older than her age.

Noor Jahan was suffering from a huge hematoma, or pool of clotted blood, inside her abdomen in addition to intestinal issues. However, her condition deteriorated after she fell in a pond in April in her enclosure. She had since been lying visibly weak with limited motion on a mound of sand, propped up against the only tree inside the enclosure.

She could not stand on her hind legs, let alone walk. She developed body sores due to lying on her side. Four Paws, a global animal welfare organisation, had recommended lifting her with a crane, ropes and belts, but that did not work either.

I fed her sugarcane and she readily started munching it. Madhubala, another elephant at Karachi Zoo, was also in the adjacent enclosure and looked active and energetic. Interestingly, Noor Jahan was the iconic playback singer of Pakistani film industry and Madhubala was a charming actress of Bollywood.

Little did I know that it would not be my last visit to the zoo and that I would be visiting Noor Jahan almost every day for the next almost two months! During this time, I developed love for the 17-year-old mammoth. Every night I would go to sleep thinking that I would visit her again in the morning. Scorching heat and fasting could not deter me.

On my first visit, I found Noor Jahan partially immobile. On April 4, a team of international veterinarians examined her, did some tests, including ultrasound and x-rays, changed her diet, and gave her a strong chance of survival. She also underwent a three-hour-long surgical procedure. I kept praying for her while sitting beside her in hot weather.

I was concerned about Noor Jahan's health as if she was a family member. I would ask the vets and zoo administration about her health without a fail. When someone would tell me that she was getting better, I would feel relieved, and I wouldn't be able to hold back my tears if I would get to know that Noor Jahan's condition was critical.

Not for a moment did I get tired of reporting on Noor Jahan's health. I wouldn't feel good when a fellow media person would pass a comment on the monotony of reporting on the ailing mammoth. I would request my mom every day to pray for Noor Jahan.

I could feel the pain and disappointment in her eyes as she lay dying on a heap of sand under a big tree which was designated as "ICU" for her. A Four Paws team tried to lift her with a crane, ropes and belt to help her stand on her feet, but it did not work. The vets would change her posture after every 7-8 hours with the help of a crane. A masseur was also arranged to massage her and help her exercise to make her stand up once again.

But sadly, nothing worked. She stopped breathing on Eid day. When I received the news on my cell-phone, I rushed to the office despite it being my off-day. I wanted to see Noor Jahan one last time. Colleagues advised me against going to the zoo on Eid day because public places are not safe for women on such occasion, but I did not listen.

I was in love with Noor Jahan. I drove to the zoo to find a very different scene. There were a lot of visitors dressed in new clothes, but everyone looked sad and in mournful mood over Noor Jahan's death.

Noor Jahan, which was imported from Tanzania in 2009, had spent 14 years at Karachi Zoo where she entertained millions of visitors during this time. She has been buried in a 15X12 pit after a post-mortem examination. But will we ever be able to know what exactly led to the death of the endeared elephant? Was it the squalid condition at the zoo, lack of timely and proper medical care, or the incompetence of the administration, or all? Will the truth ever be revealed?

 

Published in The Express Tribune, April 26^th, 2023.