Gajapayana – the majestic march of elephants from their jungle camps to the city of palaces for the Dasara celebrations – begins on Wednesday.
Preparations for the reception of the Jumbos at the Veeranahosahalli Gate in the Nagarahole Tiger Reserve and their subsequent journey to Mysuru are almost complete and the venue is being spruced up.
Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre, Mysuru District Minister HC Mahadevappa and other dignitaries will be present to launch the grand march from Veeranahosahalli Gate at 10.20 am on August 21.
Deputy Forest Commissioner Prabhu Gowda IB announced details of the Gajapayana at a press conference here on Monday.
The first group of nine elephants to arrive for the celebrations is led by the howdah elephant Abhimanyu.
After a day of rest at Aranya Bhavan upon their return from their jungle camps on August 21, the elephants will be given a grand reception upon their arrival at the palace on August 23.
After arriving at the palace, which they make their base camp until the end of the celebrations, the elephants are trained for the Jamboo Savari, the Dasara finale, under the supervision of the forest officials.
Cultural programs and felicitation of the mahouts and kavadis are also part of the Gajapayana event.
The final list of Dasara elephants includes Abhimanyu, Mahendra, Gopi, Bheema, Prashantha, Dhananjaya, Sugreeva, Hiranya, Rohita, Ekalavya, Kanjan, Lakshmi, Varalakshmi, Lakshmi of Doddharave, Harsha, Aiyapa, Parthasarathi and Maladevi. A total of 14 elephants will make it to the Dasara jumbo force. Of the 14, four will be on standby.
Like last year, Abhimanyu will be the lead bull at this year’s Dasara and will carry the famous 750 kg golden howdah.
Lakshmi, 52, of Doddaharave, Hiranya, 46, of Ramapura, Rohit, 21, of Ramapura and Kanjan, 24, of Dubare participated in Dasara for the first time last year. All four jumbos were inducted by the forest department this year after examining their profile and other factors, while the rest are veterans or have a long experience of participating in the festivities.
The arrival of the elephants signals preparations for the festivities, which begin on October 3. The government has announced that it will celebrate the festivities on a grand scale as the state receives ample rainfall. Although there was a drought last year, the festivities have not lost any of their splendour and most of the events have been retained.
