THRISSUR: Guruvayur Devaswom’s tusker Balu emerged first in the elephant race aka Aanayottam held at Sree Krishna temple on Monday, marking the beginning of annual festival.
Hundreds of people thronged the nadavazhi of Guruvayur temple to witness the rare moment of elephant race. As people cheered in full energy, Balu completed the race with ease, disregarding the scorching sun. Aanayottam is a ritual in practice at Guruvayur temple with a legend associated to Zamorin’s rule. Tusker Chenthamarakshan came second and Devadas came third.
The race begins once the mahouts of the participating elephants receive the ‘Kudamanikal’ (decorative chain with bell) from the temple staff. Once the honk sounds, the elephants start running from Manjulal. This time, Balu crossed the East entrance of the temple first. For the next 10 days of the festival, Balu will carry the idol of the deity during sheeveli ritual.
Amid strict restrictions from the authorities, elephant race was held with utmost care and proper planning.
The elephants were examined by a veterinary team and passed the fitness test to participate in the race. Earlier, all the physically fit elephants of Guruvayur used to run the race. However, with the increasing restrictions in elephant parade, the devaswom brought changes by decreasing the number of participants to avoid any unlikely incidents.