Jumbo preparations for Thrissur Pooram

Elephants hold a special place in festivals, particularly in Thrissur Pooram, where more than a hundred captive elephants are paraded each year. The 36-hour-long festival is marked by colourful fireworks, percussion and parading of caparisoned elephants along Thrissur town. Though the Thiruvambady and Paramekkavu devaswom boards have informed that they will ensure proper safety measures and provide enough amenities for the elephants, the concern over its execution poses a question mark.

“For the last few years, with the help of NGOs and cooperative groups, the devaswom boards have been providing the jumbo watermelons, palm leaves, drinking water and wet sacks to bring down the soaring temperature. But the timing of most rituals is between 10 am and 6 pm during which the elephants have to stand under the scorching sun. Also, they get ill-treated by the mahout during the parades,” says Venkitachalam of Heritage Animal Task Force, an animal rights group which has been campaigning against keeping elephants in captivity and parading them.

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