26 jumbos bond, enjoy spl food at 13th annual camp
Twenty-six elephants from temples and mutts across the state commenced their retreat at the 13th annual rejuvenation camp with a shower at Thekkampatty in Mettupalayam near Coimbatore on Monday.
Of them, 21 were from temples run by the HR & CE Department; three were from mutts and two more temple elephants from the union territory of Puducherry. It was the first outing to the camp for Premi, an elephant from Sri Ranganathasamy Temple in Srirangam.
“The 20-year-old elephant is visibly happy and bonds well with other jumbos in the camp. She also loves the special food given with fruits and cane,” said its mahout Krishnamurthy. This elephant was gifted by a Coimbatore-based industrialist to the temple in October last year.
Mahouts said that other elephants, which have met after a year, began to show signs of remembrance and have turned into playful mood. The elephant camp is more special for the elephants as they have been breathing some fresh air after being in a completely restricted environment over the last one year due to COVID-19 restrictions.
The mahouts and other staff were screened for COVID-19 and ensured that they were free from the infection.
The government has sanctioned Rs 1.67 crore for the rejuvenation camp inaugurated by HR&CE Minister Sevoor S Ramachandran in the presence of Forest Minister Dindigul Sreenivasan and Municipal Administration and Rural Development Minister SP Velumani.