An elephant in India has been fitted with a prosthetic tusk. <br /><br />The elephant, owned by Kochin Devaswom Board, had lost its tusk in an accident a few years ago. <br /><br />A video filmed in southwestern Kerala state shows a man fitting the artificial tusk on the stump of the left tusk.<br /> <br />Animal Welfare activists are up in arms over the video saying there is nothing heartwarming about it. <br /><br />In Kerala, privately owned elephants rake in a lot of money as they are rented out to take part in temple festivities. The artificial tusk is added to make the elephant more appealing to the crowd. <br /><br />Rajeev N Kurup, who has been fighting for elephant rights, said: “The ‘tusk’ is fitted onto the stump of a rotten tooth with the help of screws and steel plates in a rather painful process.” <br /><br />“It is crude and the poor elephant has to endure the pain of the artificial tusk pushing against his often inflamed, swollen gums,” he added.<br /><br />He pointed that many temple elephants are forced to carry prosthetic tusks and urged the government to stop the cruel practice.
