With northern India reeling under intense heatwave conditions, rescued elephants at a care centre here are being pampered with chilled fruits, mud baths, and oral rehydration solutions (ORS) to escape the heat.

For the 32 rescued elephants -- many of them blind or with mobility issues -- at the Elephant Conservation and Care Centre (ECCC) in Mathura, summer has not just been about survival, but a journey toward healing with care rooted in compassion.

"In the intense summer, it is very important to maintain hydration in elephants. Therefore, they are being provided with ORS once a day," said Kartick Satyanarayan, CEO of Wildlife SOS, which manages ECCC.

He noted that the task becomes more challenging as the elephants are rescued and have special needs.

"Almost all the animals have difficulty in walking, and four elephants are completely blind," Satyanarayan said.

He said the elephant enclosures have been fitted with water sprinklers to provide relief to the jumbos on hot summer days and are designed in a way that they resemble their natural habitat.

"Every enclosure has a pool and a mound. The elephant enjoys mud baths as it not only regulates their body temperature but also protects their skin from the sun and parasites," he said.

"We are trying to provide a natural habitat to these elephants here as they won't be able to survive in the wild," he added.

The ECCC was established in 2010 in collaboration with the Uttar Pradesh Forest Department.

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