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Dasara elephants accorded ceremonial welcome at Mysuru palace
Traffic movement on the roads came to a standstill to make way for the marching jumbos whose arrival in Mysuru signals the countdown to Dasara
Elephants, led by Abhimanyu, who will take part in the Dasara celebrations, line up in front of Mysuru palace where they were given a grand reception, on August 23, 2024.
| Photo Credit: SRIRAM MA
The first batch of nine elephants, led by tusker Abhimanyu, who will take part in the famous Dasara celebrations, were accorded a ceremonial welcome at the Mysuru palace on August 23.
The elephants, which set out from various jungle camps in south Karnataka, were flagged off from Veeranahosalli on the outskirts of Nagarahole on August 21 as part of ‘Gajapayana’ and reached Mysuru the same evening.
Having rested for a day, the caparisoned elephants began the final leg of their journey in Mysuru, marching through the main thoroughfares from Aranya Bhavan to the palace with aplomb.
Traffic movement on the roads came to a standstill to make way for the marching jumbos whose arrival in Mysuru signals the countdown to Dasara.
The elephants reached the Jayamarthanda Gate on the eastern side of the fort surrounding the palace where a formal welcome was accorded by a retinue of cultural troupes and the police band.
Priests performed aarti (recital of hymns to the accompaniment of lamps) for the collective welfare of the elephants while an ensemble of musicians played Nadaswaram.
An ensemble of musicians ushered in the first batch of nine elephants that will participate in Dasara celebrations, to the Mysuru palace on August 23, 2024.
| Photo Credit:
SRIRAM MA
Cultural troupes were part of the reception committee at the Mysuru palace on August 23, 2024.
| Photo Credit:
SRIRAM MA
MLAs Tanvir Sait and T.S. Srivatsa, Deputy Commissioner Lakshmikanth Reddy, senior Forest Department officials, including Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Kumar Pushkar, Chief Conservator of Forests Malathi Priya, Director of Project Tiger Dr. Ramesh Kumar, Commissioner of Police Seema Latkar were among those who offered garlands and showered flowers on the elephants.
The rituals completed, the elephants slowly walked past the main gate and entered the palace premises where they were welcomed by women with ‘Poornakumbha’ (vessel full of water). Cultural troupes led the mini procession even as a large number of tourists waited on either side of the pathway eager to catch a glimpse of the caparisoned elephants who were the show-stealers of the day.
Abhimanyu and team will be joined by the second batch of five more elephants in due course as 14 elephants have been lined up to take part in the Dasara this year. These elephants will camp on the palace premises for nearly 50 days. During this period, they will rehearse for the Vijayadashmi procession slated for October 12.
Their caretakers — the mahouts, kavadis and their family members — will also camp alongside them, and hog the limelight till the conclusion of Dasara.
A battery of Forest Department staff, including wildlife veterinarians, will be in charge of the elephants during their temporary sojourn in Mysuru. They will closely monitor the health of the elephants.
Deputy Conservator of Forests Prabhu Gouda said that the elephants will be weighed on August 24, and the rehearsals will commence on August 25.
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Karnataka
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festivals
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culture (general)