PTI
New Delhi, Updated At : 03:03 PM Apr 28, 2026 IST
Anant Mukesh Ambani has asked Colombia to suspend plans to cull 80 hippopotamuses and to consider relocating them to his wildlife centre in India, offering to fund and carry out the move.
In a letter to Colombia’s environment minister, Irene Velez Torres, Ambani — an executive director at Reliance Industries Ltd and founder of Vantara — proposed a “scientifically led” translocation of the animals from the Magdalena River basin to Vantara in Jamnagar, Gujarat.
A Vantara press statement said Ambani “has formally asked the Government of Colombia to stay that decision and consider a humane alternative: a safe, scientifically led translocation that would bring the 80 animals to a permanent home at Vantara in Jamnagar, Gujarat”.
Colombian authorities recently authorised lethal removal of 80 hippos from a fast-growing population descended from animals introduced in the 1980s. The animals are now classed as invasive due to risks to biodiversity and local communities, and the Magdalena basin is estimated to host around 200 hippos.
Vantara said it would provide veterinary expertise, capture and transport logistics, biosecurity measures and lifelong care at a purpose-built facility designed to replicate the hippos’ natural habitat. Ambani said the animals “did not choose where they were born” and argued for a humane solution if relocation is feasible.
The proposal asks Colombia to defer the cull while authorities review the relocation plan. Any transfer would need approvals from Colombian and Indian governments and relevant international bodies. Vantara said it is ready to work with Colombian authorities to develop a detailed operational plan as part of broader science-led conservation efforts.
