As a child I was very much fond of watching animals and birds. I was one of the first visitors to any circus that happened to have shows at my place. I used to visit zoos too. It's pity that I wasn't educated enough or matured enough at that age to perceive the agony of those animals which were entertaining me. Yes, off course that's true! I couldn't notice that the poor creatures, which were supposed to entertain me, were being chained, shackled, tethered or cramped in artificial cages. Did they have enough space to roam about?. No, they weren't getting favourable environment and enough space as much as what they get in their natural habitats. It's being told that these animals were accommodated in spaces that's 18,000 times less than what they could have been in their wilderness! They weren't on their own choice of food, movements and mates too. Anyhow a day of enlightenment came to me. My biology teacher and animal lover narrated the bad fate of those animals. I'm very thankful to him for changing my attitude towards the artificial confinements.
My mind was still reminiscent of bellowing of deer, roaring of big cats, trumpeting of elephants, and chirping of birds. Thanks to animal activists who have changed the conditions of captive animals. Now we can watch the animals at their comfort in spacious enclosures. Safari parks and zoological parks are there to replicate their natural habitats. It's great that some human beings have become humane towards wild animals! In the modern parks the animals ate provided with sufficient space, grass lands and tree canopies to make them healthy and stress free.
One day when I was watching the human like behaviour of chimpanzees, gorillas and orang utans at a zoo park, a little girl who was standing beside me, muttered, "These apes are better than us to play, roam around and enjoy lives in natural surroundings". That's true. When cool breeze, grass lands and tree canopies are must for animals then what about this another biological creature, the man.
Let's hope one day the animal activists would turn their focus from animals to "the modern ape", whose condition is severe than that of the zoo animals. Are our living factors not akin to those of zoo park animals? Lions and tigers in the circus are driven out from their cages into temporarily raised tunnels, and then into high enclosures to display to the spectators. Can we deny the fact that our living factors are also a little bit similar to theirs? We too are confined to concrete buildings, metallic vehicles and concrete offices or schools. No natural habitats to live. No fresh air to breathe. No cool shade of trees to sit under. At least for a part of the day! Every thing is artificial. There has been incessant efforts to dump a lot of cement, glass, burnt clay, marble tiles, plastic, steel and other metals around us to raise the temperature of development. Don't we need sufficient natural space for gaining natural immunity, health and vigour? Could we expect changes in the human world at least for the future generation? But be optimistic! Animal activists are there. One day they will rescue this modern ape too, from the perils of the intolerable concrete enclosures!
