Jumbo Savari: Arjuna still the heaviest

Mysuru: The  exercise to familiarise the Dasara elephants with the 4.8 km Jumbo Savari route from the Mysore Palace to Bannimantap began Thursday. Not only are they being taken on the route in the mornings, but also in the evenings to get them used to traversing the city in the dark as night would have fallen on their return to the palace courtyard after the Vijayadashami parade.  

The elephants also began receiving their special nutritious diet on Thursday to prepare them for the procession that will be held in the midst of  thousands of people, cheering them on.  As many as four cooks are involved in making their food which comprises of boiled black gram, green gram, wheat, boiled rice, onions, blended cooked vegetables topped with butter besides paddy straw, coconut, groundnut cake and sugarcane, according to the veterinarian  in charge of the Dasara elephants, Dr Nagaraj.

The animals are being fed twice a day, he reveals Deputy Conservator of Forests,  Siddaramappa says Rs 20 lakh have been released to prepare the special nutritious diet for the elephants and more could be released depending on their requirements. As the elephants were weighed on Thursday, howdah elephant, Arjuna emerged the heaviest at 5,650 kgs among  the six Dasara elephants in the city, although he has lost 260 kgs since the last Dasara. Elephant Dhananjaya came second , weighing 4045 kgs, followed by Gopi ( 4435 kgs), Vikrama ( 3905 kgs), Varalakshmi (3120 kgs) and Chaithra( 2920 kgs).