THRISSUR: Elephant lovers around the world are happy that the celebrated jumbo of the state, Thechikottukavu Ramachandran, will be paraded at festival grounds after a gap of more than a year. The district elephant monitoring committee chaired by Collector S Shanavas on Monday lifted the ban on the killer elephant with restrictions on parade, for two months.
The committee had appointed an expert team of veterinarians to examine the tusker, now being tethered in the Thechikottukavu Devaswom land. The expert team had reported presence of wounds on the hind legs of the elephant, while other health conditions have improved. Based on the report, the elephant monitoring committee on Monday decided to lift the ban for two months on a trial basis. The committee also imposed some restrictions while parading the elephant during festivals.
As per the committee, Ramachandran will only be allowed to be paraded in Thrissur and Palakkad districts, that too only twice a week. While parading, the tusker should be allowed to stand only at distance of 5 m from the crowd. The forest officials also directed Thechikottukavu Devaswom to avail of the service of an elephant squad during parades. The elephant should be monitored by four mahouts and a fitness certificate should be produced every week.
The Devaswom should submit the parade schedule of the tusker in advance to the elephant monitoring committee. Any loss caused by the tusker if it runs amok should be compensated by the devaswom.