Like other elephant owners in Assam state, Bhumiz says it is a struggle to afford the animals' upkeep following a 1996 court ruling banning illegal felling of trees, which left pachyderms and their handlers unemployed.
"Unless the government gives our elephants alternative employment, many more will die," said Priabrata Teron, who owns six elephants.
Elephant owners are clamouring for government 'make-work' schemes for their captive pachyderms, saying they cannot afford food and medicines for the animals.
The government keeps no figures on the number of captive elephants which have died from lack of health care or poor nutrition. But veterinarians and animal owners put the number at 70 to 75 over the past five years.
The Assam government has announced it will employ elephants for tourist rides. "We're planning to employ some jumbos in national parks by developing schemes like eco-tourism and more elephant safaris," Assam Forest Minister Pradyut Bordoloi told AFP. "We're aware of the elephants' plight."
But elephant owners say that will be not enough to keep the pachyderms in business as there are not many visitors to the far-flung region.
The government estimates some 1,200 elephants in Assam were affected by the Supreme Court ruling. Before then, the beasts were big earners.
"Our elephants worked in timber transport and got between 40,000 (around 900 dollars) to 50,000 rupees monthly," said Abani Payeng, who owns two elephants.
"An elephant's upkeep, including food and medicines, costs 7,000 to 10,000 rupees monthly," he added.
Now elephant owners say the animals at best earn 10,000 rupees a year, performing odd jobs like clearing old bushes in tea plantations and uprooting dead trees for replantations.
To boost their earning power, owners say the government should employ elephants for jungle patrols to prevent illegal tree felling and poaching.
They say forestry guards could travel on the backs of elephants rather than on foot or by jeep. They say they could also be more used for such tasks as demolishing illegal dwellings in forest areas.
Since the court ban nearly a decade ago, many people have sold land and other assets to get funds to maintain the elephants - worshipped by many as a god in mainly Hindu India.
"Somehow we managed to look after our elephants' health since the ban. But now we've exhausted all options to generate resources and our animals are in a miserable state," said another owner Tularam Baishya.
Veterinarians, too, are worried about the animals' troubles.
"The health of working elephants' health is fast deteriorating, they're becoming weak without balanced nutrition and medical attention," said elephant expert Kushal Konwar Sharma, who teaches at the College of Veterinary Science in Guwahati, Assam's main city.
"The government should put forward a comprehensive package to save these animals from death and misery," said Sangeeta Goswami, an official of the People's for Animals.