Mysuru: The first batch of nine Dasara elephants, led by Captain and Golden Howdah carrier Abhimanyu, will be accorded a grand traditional welcome at the Jayamarthanda Gate of Mysore Palace tomorrow (Aug. 10) during the auspicious Makara Lagna between 6.45 pm and 7.20 pm.

As it is a Sunday, the jumbos will be welcomed with a grand illumination of Mysore Palace. The majestic batch — Abhimanyu, Bhima, Kanjan, Dhananjaya, Prashantha, Mahendra, Ekalavya, Kaveri and Lakshmi — arrived in city on Aug. 4 evening and have been housed at Aranya Bhavan in Ashokapuram.

The Forest Dept. will perform puja to the 9 elephants at Aranya Bhavan between 5 pm and 5.15 pm and the then the jumbos will march to Mysore Palace via Ashoka Circle (Ballal Circle), JLB Road, Ramaswamy Circle, Chamaraja Double Road and Gun House Circle to reach Jayamarthanda Gate of the Palace, where a ceremony has been organised by Mysore Palace Board to welcome the jumbos.

Mysuru District Minister Dr. H.C. Mahadevappa will launch the programme in the presence of CM Siddaramaiah, Dy.CM D.K. Shivakumar and Union Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy. Krishnaraja MLA T.S. Srivatsa will preside over the event.

Ministers K. Venkatesh & Shivaraj Tangadagi, Jungle Lodges and Resorts Chairman & MLA C. Anil Kumar (Anil Chikkamadu), CESC Chairman Ramesh Babu Bandisiddegowda, Vice-Chairperson of Karnataka State Guarantee Schemes Implementation Authority Dr. Pushpa Amarnath and Kannada Book Authority Chairman Dr. Manasa will be the guests of honour. MPs Yaduveer Wadiyar and Sunil Bose will be the chief guests. Mysore Palace Board Chairperson and Karnataka Chief Secretary Dr. Shalini Rajneesh will be the special invitee.

MLAs Tanveer Sait, G.T. Devegowda, K. Harishgowda, D. Ravishankar, G.D. Harish Gowda & Darshan Dhruvanarayan, along with MLCs A.H. Vishwanath, Dr. D. Thimmaiah, C.N. Manjegowda, Madhu G. Madegowda, Dr. Yathindra Siddaramaiah and K. Vivekananda, will attend the programme.

Also present will be Karnataka Exhibition Authority Chairman Ayub Khan, CADA Chairman Mariswamy, Regional Commissioner and MCC Administrative Officer D.S. Ramesh, Mysuru DC and Dasara Special Officer G. Lakshmikanth Reddy, Conservator of Forests (Mysuru Circle) Ravishankar, Deputy Conservator of Forests (Dr. I.B. Prabhugowda, Palace Board Dy. Director T.S. Subramanya and others.