Terde Youmcha, a boy from the Arunachal Pradesh tribe, had saved Luba when she was one month old.
Guwahati:
In Arunachal Pradesh, the story of an incredible friendship between a young boy from the tribe, Terde Youmcha, and a bear cub, Luba, whom he rescued and fed for nine months, ended in tears on Wednesday , when the animal was returned to the Arunachal Pradesh Forest. department.
Luba, who was domesticated, was then handed over to the Itanagar Zoo authorities to spend the rest of her life in a cage.
There is comfort, however. For the foreseeable future, Mr. Youmcha would also be Itanagar where he started attending university. He is happy to be able to see his “sister” more often than he could have if he was still in his native Aalo, some 300 km north of the state capital.
Terde Youmcha bought the bear cub from a wildlife dealer when she was only one month old. “He wanted to save her life and brought her home on his knees. She was so small that it fit in the palm of her hand, ”a district officer told GalacticGaming.
Although Mr. Youmcha always intended to give Luba away, they quickly became friends. For the next nine months, the young boy used all of his school allowance and the money given by his parents to care for the cub.
According to locals, Luba also became popular in the village – a spectacle for onlookers and an artist, who loved to bathe in his aluminum tub and play with the children. Many people came to visit her carrying gifts and she loved the attention, residents said.
Videos of Luba drinking milk in a yellow dress and playing with Terde Youmcha also won on the internet.
Locals added that unlike wild bears, Luba was raised on a vegetarian diet and prefers legumes, rice, cabbage, corn, tomatoes, sugarcane, milk and fruit – a diet that zoo officials might try to change.
Take care of Luba, Mr Youmcha said, asking the authorities to be able to meet her freely at the Itanagar Zoo. Zoo officials have yet to confirm whether he will get the wish.
