Mysuru: The tusk of howdah-carrier of Nada Habba Mysuru Dasara elephant Abhimanyu was partially broken at Mathigodu elephant camp in Nagarahole Tiger Reserve forest yesterday. 

The 59-year-old Abhimanyu was carrying the wooden logs in the camp, when the logs accidentally tilted and a portion of its left tusk was half-broken, unable to withstand the weight of the logs.  

Abhimanyu, who will be carrying the 750-kg Golden Howdah during Jumboo Savari in the forthcoming Dasara too, has been the prime attraction of the cultural pageantry. He has been carrying the howdah consecutively since the year 2020 and will be carrying the howdah for the seventh year in a row, when Dasara unfolds in October this year too. However, with his tusk broken this time, he will be appearing in a ‘new look.’

This elephant is a Dasara veteran, as he has been participating in the annual event for the past 30 years. He was pulling the Aane Gaadi, carrying the Police Band during Jumboo Savari from 2012 to 2015, followed by carrying wooden howdah during the Srirangapatna Dasara.  

He is popularly known as ‘AK-47’ for successfully leading many combing operations, becoming an integral part of the tiger rescue operations of State Forest Department. 

J.S. Vasantha is the mahout and J.K. Raju is the kavadi of Abhimanyu.