Weighing 800kg and towering at 10-and-a-half feet in height, Irinjadappilly Raman’s ‘nada iruthal’ (ceremony of offering elephants to deity) was held amid much fanfare at the Irinjadappilly Sree Krishna Temple in Thrissur district on Sunday. Within two days, Raman has turned out to be quite a sensation. Even the international media is now discussing him. What makes him special? He is a robot.
Well, robotic elephants are nothing new. They have made news earlier, too. However, this was the first time such an electric elephant was being ‘accepted’ by a temple. Raman was gifted to the temple by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) India with the support of actor Parvathy Thiruvothu.
This development comes at a time when there have been calls to end the practice of using captive elephants for temple rituals, and free the gentle giants from cycles of torture. A day later the Aluva Thiruvairanikulam Mahadeva Temple also drew attention of animal lovers, as its management committee used a wooden palanquin instead of an elephant for ‘ezhunnellippu’ (deity’s procession). Sources say the move was part of a decision to not put elephants through trauma, especially considering the scorching weather.
“We had used ‘ratham’ (chariot) instead of elephants for two years. This year, we used the palanquin for vilakku ezhunellippu in the temple,” says a Thiruvairanikulam Mahadeva Temple Trust Committee member, requesting anonymity.
“Nowhere in the scriptures is it written that ‘ezhunnellippu’ should be carried out using an elephant. Thus, the temple committee decided to use a palanquin made of teak.”
In 2018, the Nalppathenneeswaram Sree Mahadeva Temple in Alappuzha district had proposed putting an end to use of captive elephants for rituals. Instead of the caparisoned elephants, jeevathas – wooden structure used in temples of central Travancore to mount the idols of deities – were proposed. The Kanichukulangara Temple in the same district, too, had set a similar example.
Currently, ‘Robo Raman’ has spurred discussions on using mechanical elephants so as to keep temple ceremonies safe and free of cruelty. While animal lovers welcome the idea, elephant owners and traditionalists see it as an assault on the land’s culture.
Khushboo Gupta, director of Advocacy Projects, PETA India, who was present at Raman’s ‘nadayiruthal’, says the “frustration of captivity” causes elephants to run amok. “We are happy that such a step was taken by the temple, and are ready to assist other shrines that wish to replace the live elephants with robotic ones or alternatives like chariots and palanquins,” she adds.
Khushboo points out that the ban on use of weapons such as bullhooks to handle captive elephants has been ineffective. “They are still used openly,” she notes. “We hope the government encourages other temples in the state to adopt such alternatives.”
Notably, some days ago, a Goa-based NGO called Centre for Research on Animal Rights wrote to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for an inquiry into the deaths of 138 captive elephants in the state over the past five years. It also sought retirement of all elephants aged over 60, and recommended the use of mechanical alternatives at ‘poorams’.
“Elephants paraded at festivals across the state are beaten, goaded and dragged with the banned weapon called ankush or thotti. They are made to stand for hours under the scorching sun,” noted the letter.
The animal welfare body also highlighted that it had recorded 27 instances of elephants going berserk in the current ‘pooram’ season alone.
Former Animal Welfare Board of India member M N Jayachandran concurs, adding that the recent case of celebrity elephant Thechikottukavu Ramachandran running amok in Palakkad was “painful”.
“Forest officials claim that no such incident had occurred, and that the elephant had charged forward after hearing the trumpeting of another elephant,” says Jayachandran, who is currently associated with Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
“Many years ago, we had done an inquiry in which the elephant was found to be unfit for processions, as it was partially blind and could be easily provoked. However, it is still used in temple festivals and rituals.”
‘No God or Goddess would want torture of elephants ’
Jayachan dran says if a tradition is dangerous and violates rules, it should be stopped. “Many temples in the state have decided to discontinue the practice of using live elephants for rituals and processions,” he adds. Cherthala-based medical student Ananthakrishnan Prasad, who had made a music video portraying the cruelty faced by captive elephants two years ago, says it is high time to end traumatising the hapless creatures in the name of culture.
“Captive elephants endure a lot of torture before being grandly paraded at festivals and public events. The poor things go through a lot of distress; they get terrified by crackers,” he adds. Techie and elephant enthusiast Di leep Kr ishnan (name changed) says he is a staunch traditionalist and advocates preservation of culture. “However, I strongly oppose using elephants for temple purposes,” he says.
“I hail from Thrissur and grew up watching poorams. Just search ‘elephant torture in Kerala’ on YouTube – one can get an idea of what these animals go through. No God or Goddess would want that in their name!” Ebin Baby, a teacher at a block resource centre in Cherpulassery, airs similar views. “I believe the use of elephants for festivities was an old way of showing power.
Under current laws, torture of animals is punishable. Thus, such traditions should change.” Savitha Olappamanna, an elephant lover and teacher in Palakkad, believes ensuring better care of the pachyderms is the way forward. “I was born and brought up at the famous Olappamanna house where many film shootings have also been held. Poet Olappamanna belonged to our family. I grew up seeing the elephants and other cultural practices of Kerala,” she says.
“Hence, I cannot even imagine a pooram with a mechanical elephant. However, I am against the cruelty against elephants. They should be fed well and given proper care like old times.” Meanwhile, the Elephant Owners’ Federation members say that the use of mechanical elephants in some temples is not going to affect age-old traditions. “There are around 7,400 temples – both big and small ones – in the state that use captive elephants for festivals and rituals, and are registered under the forest depar tment,” says the federation’s general secretary, V Sasikumar.
“The temple festival season is usually from December to mid-May. Currently, there are 430 captive elephants in the state, and 300 are available for rituals.” Sasikumar says people who claim that the practice of use of live elephants should be discontinued seek to “destroy the essence of the temples, festivals and rituals”. “If robots replace live elephants at the Thrissur Pooram, for instance, I am doubtful if people will throng to watch the pooram,” he adds.
State secretary of the federation, K Mahesh, says there is “a conspiracy going on against destroying the culture of temple festivals”. He alleges that many NGOs make money in the name of animal welfare. “Poorams and elephants are part of our culture and tradition, we need to sustain them,” he adds. Thiruvananthapuram district secretary of the Kerala Pooram Coordination Committee Viswas P Nair is also uncomfortable with the idea of rituals without elephant s.
“Some temple committee members believe taking the idols of deities on a palanquin or chariot will be disrespectful. We are against these new trends. Use of elephants should continue, but animal welfare rules must be strictly followed,” he says. Ernakulam distric t secretary of the Kerala festival coordination committee, Sajeesh K R, asserts the tradition of using captive elephants for processions and rituals will continue.
“These captive elephants are used only during the festival season, after which the elephants can be seen in their resting sheds. “It’s against the rules to make use of elephants for any other purposes,” he says. “Currently, only 300 elephants are available for rituals, and that causes additional burden. On an average, 15 elephants die every year due to various reasons. Hence, the remaining elephants face overload during the festival season.
The state government has recently formulated new rules to bring in elephants from other states.” Sajeesh adds mahouts should be given proper training on elephant care as well animal welfare laws. “Classes by veteran mahouts who know A to Z about elephant handling and care should also be conducted,” he says. “Our motto is safe parading of elephants, and their welfare. Officials concerned should also take the necessary steps to implement such measures.”