Evaluation based on age, weight, physical condition and musth status; Health cards issued

By M.T. Yogesh Kumar

Mysuru: With just 36 days remaining to bring the Dasara elephant team to Mysuru for the iconic Dasara festivities, the Forest Department has ramped up its selection process by visiting eight elephant camps and conducting health assessments on 25 elephants. Health cards have been issued for each of the elephants examined.

In a proactive move, a team of Forest officials has visited elephant camps across Mysuru, Kodagu and Chamarajanagar districts to shortlist elephants for this year’s Dasara celebrations. Veterinarians at the camps examined each elephant and issued health cards based on a range of criteria.

What’s in a health card?

Each elephant’s health card includes detailed data, such as age, weight, physical condition, temperament, musth status, and for female elephants, pregnancy status. These reports are now under review as the department moves toward finalising the selection list.

Leading the team once again will be the combing operation specialist Abhimanyu, who is expected to carry the Golden Howdah.

Other elephants assessed include: Mathigodu Camp: Bheema, Srikanta & Partha; Dubare: Dhananjaya, Prashanth, Kanjan, Sugreeva, Srirama, Harsha, Ayyappa & Hemavathi; Doddaharave: Ekalavya & Lakshmi; Bheemanakatte: Ganesh, Sriranga & Roopa; Balle: Mahendra; Bandipur Old Campus: Hiranya, Lakshmi, Rohith, Parthasarathi & Airavata (Kebbe); Harangi: Lakshmana & Eshwara.

All the jumbos listed above have been evaluated and their health reports have been submitted. All have been declared fit for travel. However, the task of narrowing down the list to 14 or 15 elephants is now underway.

Department faces the dual challenge of selecting future Golden Howdah carriers and simultaneously training younger elephants for future editions, adding a layer of complexity to the process.

With only 15 days remaining to finalise the Dasara elephant team, the selection efforts are in full swing. The ceremonial send-off for the first batch of nine elephants has been scheduled for Aug. 4, with the auspicious time for their arrival in Mysuru already fixed on Aug. 7.