Bheema and other elephants at Aranya Bhavan in Mysuru on Thursday. All nine Dasara elephants led by Abhimanyu will be welcomed at the palace on Friday.
| Photo Credit: M.A. Sriram
The first batch of Dasara elephants will be accorded a traditional welcome at the palace on Friday.
The jumbos that arrived here on Wednesday from their jungle camps during the Gajapayana in Hunsur taluk, will be received at the Jayamarthanda Gate of the palace by the dignitaries. A team of priests will perform puja and rituals before they are welcomed into the palace premises which will be the jumbo camp until the festivities conclude.
The mahouts, kavadis and their family members have accompanied the elephants, and they too will stay in the palace surroundings till the celebrations get over.
All arrangements for the stay of elephants and mahouts and their families are done with temporary structures coming up for their accommodation. Once the elephants settle down, the training for the Jamboo Savari will commence, which may happen in the next two days.
Minister in charge of Mysuru district H.C. Mahadevappa will accord a grand welcome to the elephants between 10 a.m. and 10.30 a.m. MLAs, MLCs, and other elected representatives from Mysuru and Chamarajanagar will be present.
The batch of nine elephants led by Abhimanyu are camping at the Aranya Bhavan upon their arrival here on Wednesday, following the flagging off of the Gajapayana at Veeranahosahalli Gate in Nagarahole Tiger Reserve amidst much fanfare and gaiety.
All nine elephants were transported to Mysuru in separate trucks and all of them safely reached Aranya Bhavan amidst the escort of the police and forest personnel.
Before the elephants leave the Aranya Bhavan on Wednesday between 8 am and 9 a.m., the forest staff will perform a traditional puja. The elephants will march to the palace from Ballal Circle, Ramaswamy Circle, and the Chamaraja Double Road, Gunhouse Circle before reaching the Jayamarthanda Gate of the palace.
The 58-year-old Abhimanyu continues to perform the task of carrying a 750-kg golden howdah at the Jamboo Savari during the Dasara finale this year.
Other jumbos in the first batch include Gopi, Prashanth, Rohit, Kanjan, Bheema, Ekalavya, Varalakshmi and Lakshmi.
Ekalavya – a first-timer
There is a lot of curiosity about tusker Ekalavya, who has found a place in the elite Dasara jumbo squad for the first time. The 39-year-old tusker may replace the role played by Arjuna, who met a tragic death during a fight with a wild tusker in the forests of Sakleshpur last year.
Arjuna, who carried the golden howdah for eight consecutive years, died during an operation to catch an erratic elephant in Hassan district in December last year.
Ekalavya is 2.88 meters tall and weighs between 4,000 kg and 4,200 kg. It belonged to Mattigodu camp. The tusker is making a debut this year.
It is the first Dasara without the mighty Arjuna, whose majesty is fondly remembered besides its perfection of carrying out the tasks of carrying the golden howdah with such finesse.
