TIRUCHY: The Sri Ranganathaswamy temple welcomed a new member on Wednesday when Premi @ Lakshmi a cow elephant arrived in the premises. Lakshmi joins Aandal and the two elephants would be housed in the shelter behind the Venugopalaswamy Sanathi.
Curious devotees made a beeline to the shelter to have a glimpse of the new entrant to the temple's family.
Lakshmi Mills Association of Coimbatore proposed to donate an elephant to the temple last year. On Wednesday, Premi @ Lakshmi, a 20-year-old elephant was handed over to officials. the donation was delayed by six months, despite getting approval from all concerned , because of lockdown restrictions.
Since the temple management knew about the second elephant's arrival in advance, the additional shelter was built to accommodate Aandal and Lakshmi . Lakshmi was directly taken to the shelter upon arrival. She is taken care of by a temporary mahout.
A mahout from the temple said Lakshmi was restive for a couple of hours as the premises was new. But Aandal's presence calmed her and she eventually settled down. Temple officials added that Aandal will be used till Lakshmi adapts to her new routine and gets familiar with rituals.