Weight & Walk! Dasara elephants start second level training
2 min read
Mysuru: Dasara howdah elephant Abhimanyu led team of elephants commenced weight training with sandbags on Raja Marga, the jamboo savari route from Mysore Palace to Bannimantap in the city.
A total of nine elephants- Abhimanyu, Dhananjaya, Gopi, Bheema, Rohit, Ekalavya, Kanjan, Lakshmi and Varalakshmi have arrived in the first batch.
Abhimanyu, the 59-year-old elephant, began his training involving carrying of sandbags to simulate the weight of the traditional Golden Howdah that weighs 750-kg.
DCF I B Prabhu Gowda, veterinarian Dr Muzeeb Ur Rehman, elephant caretakers Akram Pasha, mahout Vasanth and other mahouts prepared the gaadi and namdha, a smooth bed which is used for placing the howdah on Jamboo Savari. They secured the setup with ropes and placed a cradle on top, with a combined weight of approximately 520 kg on Abhimanyu.
Abhimanyu demonstrated his strength and readiness for the grand 2024 Dasara celebrations, by carrying the sandbags over a route from the Mysore Palace Elephant Camp to Bannimantap and back, covering a total distance of 11.9 km. This marked the second level of his training.
DCF Prabhu Gowda said, following the Gajapayana, the first batch of nine elephants practiced twice daily under normal conditions. From today, they will undergo second-level training with weight, gradually increasing the load on Abhimanyu.
He also said that, all the elephants are healthy and are actively participating in their walk, to acclimatise them with the hustle and bustle.
Before the training, priest Prahlad Rao performed Gajapuja for Abhimanyu and kumki elephants Lakshmi and Varalakshmi. Flower petals were showered on the elephants.
The Forest Department’s Wildlife Ambulance accompanied the elephants during their walk, as a precautionary measure.
ACP Palace H Chandrashekar also accompanied the Dasara elephants.
The traffic police barricaded the roads for the smooth movement of the elephants.
– Team Mysoorunews
Mysooru News
