Unveiling the jumbo grandeur

THRISSUR: It was an amazing day for the elephant lovers in the cultural capital as 41 elephants on Thursday did a catwalk at the Thekkinkadu Maidan displaying their vital statistics. The elephants arrived at the Thekkinkadu Maidan as part of the Forest Department’s initiative to introduce registration certificate books to the them. The majesty and magnificence of jumbos have long enjoyed a special place in the minds of city dwellers, and Thursday’s procession of elephants without any paraphernalia really drew a huge crowd to the Thekkinkadu Maidan.“It was really a beauty pageant of jumbos. The magnificent spectacle unveils the majesty and grandeur of the elephants,” said an onlooker who was busy taking snaps of the rare event. Unveiling the grandeur, the elephants posed in different styles before the officials of the Forest Department to take the measurements of their tusk, tail, head and toes. The authorities filled the data book with information on the  animal’s age, sex, name, owner’s name, measurement, identification mark, 10-digit number of microchip that were implanted earlier, medical history, the drugs administered, the veterinary doctor who treats it, the time at which it usually develops musth and the previous incidents of musth.“On the first day, we could register the details of the 41 elephants and we will continue it on Friday. A total of 43 elephants are expected to arrive here on Friday that includes elephants belonging to various individuals and the Cochin Devaswom Board,” said Thrissur DFO A R Sasikumar. “We will record the details of 64 elephants in the elephant shelter belonging to the Guruvayur Devaswom on another day.”The book in the size of a magazine has various details of the elephant, including its health and ownership status and the photographs from four angles. It will put a halt on many unhealthy trends in the sector, said N Mahesh of the Elephant Owners Association. Henceforth, the illegal inter-state and  intra-state transfer and transportation of the elephants would come to an end, he said.