Weight of second batch of 5 Dasara elephants checked, 'Sugreeva' weighs the highest

Mysuru: Weight of the second batch of five Dasara Elephants including three new ones which arrived in heritage city-Mysuru on Monday evening, was checked on Tuesday morning, at about 60-year old lorry weighing bridge on Dhanvanthri road.

43-year old 'Sugreeva' from Dubaare camp of Madikeri wildlife division weighed the highest of 5,545 kg. He was followed by the new entrant, 56-year old 'Srikanta' from Matthigodu camp of Nagarahole Tiger Reserve, who weighed 5,540 kg.

42-year old Gopi from Dubaare camp weighed the third highest of 4,990 kg. Another new elephant 44-year old 'Roopa' from Bheemanakatte camp of NTR weighed 3,320 kg.

One more debutant jumbo 11-year old Hemavathi from Dubaare camp weighed 2440 kg.

Weight of Dasara Elephant Sugreeva checked at a lorry weighing bridge on Dhanvanthri road in Mysuru on Tuesday morning. 

The second batch of elephants joined the first batch of nine Elephants-Abhimanyu, Lakshmi, Kaveri, Bheema, Mahendra, Ekalavya, Prashantha, Dhananjaya, and Kanjan for training from Tuesday morning.

It was a scene to behold to see all 14 elephants marching together majestically in a perfect lane at the heart of the city on Jamboo Savari procession route or Raja marg. They moved from North gate of Mysuru Palace premises till Government Ayurveda college circle on Sayyaji Rao road. As usual, people lined up in huge numbers on either side of the road to have a glimpse of these gentle giants and took their photos and videos on their mobile phones. The elephants were escorted by the staff and vehicles of the forest department and police. DCF I B Prabhu Gowda and RFO Syed Nadeem joined them. As usual, a magnetic metal detector, attached to the escort vehicle, moved in front of them, to ensure that no sharp object pricked the feet of the pachyderms.

Now along with the first batch of Elephants, these second batch Elephants will also be fed with a special nutritious menu to train them to have enough stamina for the grand finale on Vijayadashami on October 2. They are fed with boiled rice with green gram, black gram, wheat, vegetables, onion and salt, topped with butter before their training in the morning and after the training in the evening. After their training in the morning and before their training in the evening, they are fed with with kusre-paddy, coconut, jaggery, groundnut cake and sugarcane packed with hay straw. During the day, they munch on green grass and branch fodder (leaves of banyan tree). With this they will further gain weight too before they return to their respective forest camps after Dasara.

With 36 days left for Mysuru Dasara Jamboo Savari procession and all 14 elephants in Mysuru now, the training for Dasara elephants will intensify now.

As of now the Elephants being familiarised with the Jamboo Savari procession route - Raja marga, by taking them on strolls in the morning, and evening too (to familiarise them with lights, as it would be dusk by the time they return from Bannimantapa to the Palace after the procession).

In the coming days, besides Abhimanyu 750-kg golden howdah for the past five years, few more male elephants will be trained to carry the wooden howdah, with the weight equivalent to golden howdah, in order to have standbys and also to prepare second line elephants for coming Dasaras. They will also be accustomed to sounds of 21 cannon fire shots, which would be fired during Dasara Jamboo Savari procession on Vijayadashami. Some of these elephants will also participate in the Dasara rituals of the erstwhile royal family and also in Srirangapatna Dasara.

First batch of nine Dasara elephants arrived at Aranya Bhavan after a grand Gajapayana event at Veeranahosahalli near Nagarahole Tiger Reserve of Hunsur taluk of Mysuru district on August 4. They were shifted to Mysuru Palace after a traditional welcome on August 10. Their weight was checked on August 11. Their training began from August 12. The second batch of five Dasara Elephants arrived on August 25 evening and they were accorded a traditional welcome.