A herd of hippopotamuses linked to drug lord Pablo Escobar, marked for culling in Colombia, has been offered a new home in India under a proposal by Anant Ambani, son of billionaire Mukesh Ambani.
Ambani is appealing to the Colombian government to reconsider its decision to euthanize 80 hippos and is offering "a fully resourced, safe and scientifically led translocation" to Vantara, a sprawling wildlife conservation centre founded by him in Jamnagar in India's Gujarat state.
Escobar illegally brought four hippos to Colombia during the 1980s, to live alongside elephants, giraffes, kangaroos and other exotic animals in his private zoo on the luxury estate Hacienda Napolés, outside Medellín.
When the drug lord was killed by security forces in 1993, the hippos were left to fend for themselves and the past 30 years saw the original four reproducing vigorously and spreading nationwide.
Today, the invasive population is now estimated at over 200, as the semi-aquatic mammals seem to like their South American home as they are finding plenty of food and water and the climate is favourable.
With no natural enemies and without intervention, the population could grow to 1,000 animals by 2035, Colombia's former environment minister Susana Muhamad says. She warns that such a development could threaten the original diversity of species.
Hippos can pollute the soil and water, unbalance the ecosystem and endanger local residents. So far, though, many people have become accustomed to the animals and even use them for tourism.
But the risk of an attack remains.
"You have to be very careful," says biologist David Echeverri from the Cornare regional environmental centre. Even if they appear to be a calm species, hippos are actually unpredictable.
Their weight means they are able to capsize boats.
Colombia’s Environment Ministry has been pushing for the culling, saying it is needed to protect the country’s ecosystem. Ambani says the animals “did not choose where they were born, nor did they create the circumstances they now face,” and calls for a humane solution.
The Colombian government has also considered sterilization. But Muhamad has noted the "risk that the animals will die, that they will have an allergic reaction to the anaesthetic or that the human team on site will be endangered."
Sterilizing a hippopotamus costs an average of 40 million pesos (around $11,075).
Wildlife conservationists caution that transferring the hippos may be impractical due to high costs and legal hurdles.
Also, as biology professor María Ángela Echeverry from Javeriana University in Bogotá notes, that too comes with risks.
"When we transport animals or plants from one place to another, we also transport their pathogens, bacteria and viruses," she says.
The 3,500-acre Vantara facility claims to be one of the world’s largest wildlife rescue and conservation centres, housing over 2,000 species. It has an elephant hospital and breeding centres for endangered species.
It is not open to the public but hosted high-profile guests such as Lionel Messi, Ivanka Trump and Rihanna during Ambani's wedding celebrations.
Located near the Ambani refinery in Jamnagar, the sanctuary has faced scrutiny over rapid acquisition of exotic animals and alleged violations of wildlife trade laws.
