Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

Use of elephants for festivals to be closely monitored

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Devaswom Minister G. Sudhakaran has said that the government will keep a close tab on use of elephants for ‘pooram’ festivals in different parts of the State so as to check their ill-treatment.

He was briefing mediapersons after a meeting of officials of the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) and the Guruvayur Devaswom, elephant owners and animal rights activists here on Wednesday.

Mr. Sudhakaran said the government would consider ways to discourage use of elephants for festivals organised with commercial motives. “The government will not allow ill-treatment of elephants and will visit anyone found guilty of ill-treatment of elephants,” Mr. Sudhakaran said.

The government, he said, will not mind providing police protection to elephants if instances of ill-treatment were brought to its notice. It will also insist on provision of sufficient quantity of water for elephants used for festival processions and consider providing a security cover around elephants lined up for festivities such as the Thrissur Pooram so that the animals and the people milling around the festival venue remain protected.

He said the government intended to place emphasis on giving proper training to mahouts.

This had become necessary in view of reports that in several instances, elephants ran amok following cruel treatment by untrained mahouts. Ill-treatment of any kind would be strictly banned and any instances of ill-treatment would be punished severely, he said.

Mr. Sudhakaran said the Guruvayur Devaswom would launch a training centre for mahouts on May 25 at an estimated outlay of Rs.54.58 lakh. Other Devaswoms should consider emulating the example set by the Guruvayur Devaswom, he said.

Poet Sugathakumari, who attended the meeting, lauded the initiative taken by the government to put an end to ill-treatment of elephants and hoped that the measures contemplated by it would result in humane treatment of the animals.

TDB chairman C.K. Guptan, Guruvayur Devaswom chairman Thottathil Ravindran, Koodalmanikyam Devaswom commissioner C.K. Viswanathan, IAS, and others attended the meeting.

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