Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage is an orphanage, nursery and hatchery for wild Asian elephants located in Pinnawala village, 13 km northeast of Kegalle town in Sabaragamuwa Province, Sri Lanka. Pinnawala has the world's largest herd of captive elephants. The orphanage was established to care for and protect the many orphaned, unweaned, wild elephants that roam in and near the forests of Sri Lanka. It was established in 1975 by the Sri Lanka Department of Wildlife Conservation (DWC). The Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage was established in 1975 by the Sri Lankan Ministry of Conservation to feed and care for and protect orphaned baby elephants found in the wild. The orphanage was located in Wilpattu National Park, then moved to the tourist complex in Bentota, and then to Dehiwala Zoo. From the zoo it was relocated to the village of Pinnawala on a 10 ha coconut plantation next to the Maha Oya River. The primary home care area is on the east side of Highway B199 at Rambukkana Road. The main campus also houses a few restaurants and food stands, as well as administrative buildings, including dormitories and veterinary facilities. The elephant bathing and viewing area along the Oya River is directly opposite on the west side of the highway. At the time of settlement, the orphanage had five baby elephants forming its nucleus. The number of orphans continued until 1995 when the DWC established the Elephant Transit Home (ETH) adjacent to Udawalawe National Park. Since then, orphaned babies have been brought to ETH and the Pinnawala herd has largely been born there. It was planned that the facility would attract local and foreign visitors whose income would help sustain the orphanage. The Pinnawala Orphanage has since become a tourist attraction. In 1978 the orphanage was taken over by the Department of National Zoological Gardens Sri Lanka. In 1982 an elephant breeding program was started. As of 2012, 78 elephants lived here. Visitors to the park can observe the care and daily routines of the elephants, such as bottle-feeding elephant calves, feeding all the other elephants, and bathing in the Ma Oya (river).