For the love of donkeys
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GURGAON: In India, donkey is just a beast of burden. But for this British couple, Bob Harrison, 70, and Jean, 72, the animal has become a reason for them to stay back in India.
Running a shelter for injured and abandoned donkeys at the non-descript Kherki Majra village near Gurgaon, Bob has 60 donkeys, not to mention six horses and many countless stray dogs. For the past 12 years, every afternoon Bob goes around the city in his ambulance to areas where the donkeys toil and bring those, who need care, to the shelter.
After retiring as immigration officer from British High Commission in 1997, Bob went back to UK but his love for donkeys did not let him stay there and he decided to return to India.
According to rough estimates, around 4,000 donkeys work at construction sites in and around the city. "Laden with bricks and sandbags, they are made to work until they die. They get a break only when they give up and are unable to do it any more," says Jean.
Though they returned to India to work on their mission to bring medical care to the donkeys, the actual work started when they had to bring some of them home in Sector 45. However, it wasn't easy. The neighbours opposed to the action and demanded that the couple removed the makeshift shelter on the courtyard of their house. After the locals approached ward councilor Nisha Singh and the matter reached the municipal commissioner's office, the then commissioner Rajesh Khullar provided a piece land for the shelter in Kherki Majra on lease for 10 years.
In the shelter, tending the menagerie, Bob says the beautiful animal is made to slog at construction sites without food or water for long hours. "These animals often suffer injuries in accidents, but no proper treatment is given to them by their owners. In such cases, they are often abandoned."
When asked what keeps them going for donkeys, Jean says: "Other animals like cows and dogs find patrons but just because donkeys are not attractive, they are not only neglected, but also treated terribly."
During their mission, Harrisons kept adding abandoned donkeys but sadly they have failed to attract any significant financial help in form of donations or otherwise. The couple has been able to hire only two helpers to run the shelter.
Speaking about expenses, Bob says as of now he is able to manage the shelter with his pension, but he is worried about the future. "At present, I spent around Rs 1 lakh a month, which includes fodder, salary of the helpers, ambulance and diesel and other miscellaneous things," he says.
In a foreign country, it's a lonely battle
Rao Jaswant Singh
Gurgaon: As the Harrisons continue to spend from their own pockets for the care of the donkeys in the shelter, without much help from others, the challenges they have face since day one are enormous - be it mindset of the locals, dilly-dallying tactics of the authorities or lack of funding from other agencies.
At present, they are struggling to get a new enclosure build at the shelter, where they could put the donkeys, who are about to deliver babies. "I have been visiting the municipal commissioner's office regularly to find out the progress, but there is no positive response. I am really worried as to how will I be able to handle the situation if babies are delivered and there is no covered enclosure to accommodate them," said Jean.
She said she met Anju Chaudhary, joint commissioner at the MCG, and discussed about shelter, but the officer said it will take some time.
While Bob said it was unfortunate to find that their neighbours wanted them out from the colony because they did not want donkeys near their houses. "Some of them even asked us to leave the country if we wanted to take care of donkeys and other stray animals," he said.
'Even government officials seem to be uninterested in our mission. They avoid meeting us as they find our love for donkeys something akin to craziness," said Bob.
To fight financial crunch, the Harrisons are now planning to set up a registered society with the help of friends. "By setting up society, it will be easy to get donations and contributions from our friends and well-wishers," he said, and added that they will carry on with their mission despite all odds.
Running a shelter for injured and abandoned donkeys at the non-descript Kherki Majra village near Gurgaon, Bob has 60 donkeys, not to mention six horses and many countless stray dogs. For the past 12 years, every afternoon Bob goes around the city in his ambulance to areas where the donkeys toil and bring those, who need care, to the shelter.
After retiring as immigration officer from British High Commission in 1997, Bob went back to UK but his love for donkeys did not let him stay there and he decided to return to India.
According to rough estimates, around 4,000 donkeys work at construction sites in and around the city. "Laden with bricks and sandbags, they are made to work until they die. They get a break only when they give up and are unable to do it any more," says Jean.
Though they returned to India to work on their mission to bring medical care to the donkeys, the actual work started when they had to bring some of them home in Sector 45. However, it wasn't easy. The neighbours opposed to the action and demanded that the couple removed the makeshift shelter on the courtyard of their house. After the locals approached ward councilor Nisha Singh and the matter reached the municipal commissioner's office, the then commissioner Rajesh Khullar provided a piece land for the shelter in Kherki Majra on lease for 10 years.
In the shelter, tending the menagerie, Bob says the beautiful animal is made to slog at construction sites without food or water for long hours. "These animals often suffer injuries in accidents, but no proper treatment is given to them by their owners. In such cases, they are often abandoned."
When asked what keeps them going for donkeys, Jean says: "Other animals like cows and dogs find patrons but just because donkeys are not attractive, they are not only neglected, but also treated terribly."
During their mission, Harrisons kept adding abandoned donkeys but sadly they have failed to attract any significant financial help in form of donations or otherwise. The couple has been able to hire only two helpers to run the shelter.
Speaking about expenses, Bob says as of now he is able to manage the shelter with his pension, but he is worried about the future. "At present, I spent around Rs 1 lakh a month, which includes fodder, salary of the helpers, ambulance and diesel and other miscellaneous things," he says.
In a foreign country, it's a lonely battle
Rao Jaswant Singh
Gurgaon: As the Harrisons continue to spend from their own pockets for the care of the donkeys in the shelter, without much help from others, the challenges they have face since day one are enormous - be it mindset of the locals, dilly-dallying tactics of the authorities or lack of funding from other agencies.
At present, they are struggling to get a new enclosure build at the shelter, where they could put the donkeys, who are about to deliver babies. "I have been visiting the municipal commissioner's office regularly to find out the progress, but there is no positive response. I am really worried as to how will I be able to handle the situation if babies are delivered and there is no covered enclosure to accommodate them," said Jean.
She said she met Anju Chaudhary, joint commissioner at the MCG, and discussed about shelter, but the officer said it will take some time.
While Bob said it was unfortunate to find that their neighbours wanted them out from the colony because they did not want donkeys near their houses. "Some of them even asked us to leave the country if we wanted to take care of donkeys and other stray animals," he said.
'Even government officials seem to be uninterested in our mission. They avoid meeting us as they find our love for donkeys something akin to craziness," said Bob.
To fight financial crunch, the Harrisons are now planning to set up a registered society with the help of friends. "By setting up society, it will be easy to get donations and contributions from our friends and well-wishers," he said, and added that they will carry on with their mission despite all odds.
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