Forest department begins selection of Dasara jumbos

With Dasara fast approaching, the Forest department has commenced the process of selecting elephants, which play a major role in Vijayadashami procession (jamboo savari), the last leg of the famed ‘Naada Habba.’

Dasara commences on October 7 and concludes on October 15 this
year.

The Forest department authorities have identified 14 elephants, 11 male and three female for the Dasara procession. The officials, led by Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF), Wildlife, Mysuru Division, V Karikalan visited four elephant camps — Mathigodu, Dodda Harave, Anekadu and Dubare — and checked the the elephants. They are waiting for the fitness report of the jumbos from the veterinarians.

“We will hold a meeting with the officers and send a list of elephants to chief wildlife warden for his approval,” said
Karikalan.

The Forest officials checked Abhimanyu, which is likely to carry golden howdah, and Gopi, Vikrama, Vijaya and Cauvery - which participated in previous Dasara. Other elephants include, Gopalakrishna, Vikram, Dhananjay, Prashanth, Harsha, Lakshman, Chaitra. The officer said that they have sought details on the fitness of the elephants, whether they suffered from any major health issues in the recent past and about the injuries.

The DCF said that mahouts and kaavadis - the caretakers of the elephants - will be vaccinated for Covid-19.