BENGALURU: The relocation of Karnataka’s popular 73-year-old tusker Gajendra from Budipadaga to Mathigodu sparked serious concerns among veterinarians, who pointed out that the jumbo cannot be handled if a fight breaks out at the new location.
As pressure mounted from social media users to move Gajendra as he was alone at Budipadaga in BRT Tiger Reserve, Forest, Environment, and Ecology Minister Eshwar B Khandre issued orders to shift the jumbo to the Mathigodu elephant camp in Nagarhole Tiger Reserve, which has 12 elephants.
The foresters shifted him in an open-air truck covering the distance in three-and-a-half hours. Veterinarians said, “He is a mighty bull, despite his age. In Mathigodu, other tuskers already have mates. Once Gajendra goes there and a fight takes place, handling it would be difficult. In fact, females from overloaded elephant camps should have been shifted to Budipadaga for his company and better habitat.”
Adding to the fear, Gajendra has killed a tusker and his mahout in the camp when he was in heat (masth) before. Following that incident, he was kept tied most of the time as the new mahouts were unable to handle him. He was earlier a part of the K Gudi elephant camp.
A few years later, the entire camp was shifted to Budipadaga because of better facilities. But with the death of elephants and two other elephants being shifted, Gajendra was left alone on the banks of the Suvarnamukhi River.
Khandre said elephants are social animals and the decision was taken after a representation from concerned citizens.
Twenty years ago, Gajendra was one of the most popular Dasara elephants. “He was the favourite of late Member of Parliament Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar. He was used for many elephant capture operations in Uttarakhand, UP, MP and two years ago in Tamil Nadu. A year ago, he was part of the elephant and tiger capture operations in Bandipur. If late Arjuna was mighty, Gajendra is a notch higher,” said foresters who have worked with the tusker.