CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government has sent 15 mahouts and cavadis (assistants) to Thailand to take part in a training programme on elephant care and management.
The team includes staff from the Mudumalai and Anamalai Tiger Reserves. They will attend a week-long training session commencing on Tuesday at the Thai Elephant Conservation Center (TECC) in Lampang.
The training of the 15 staff, who are accompanied by P Manikanda Prabhu, assistant director of Vandalur Zoo, forest veterinarian K Rajesh Kumar from Mudumalai and forest ranger M Megala, will cover elephant nutrition, health, behaviour, camp management, and bonding methods between elephants and handlers.
Supriya Sahu, additional chief secretary of the Environment, Climate Change and Forests Department, said this is the second group of mahouts and cavadis sent to TECC. The first group of 13 visited the centre in 2023. She said the purpose is to exchange methods and ideas related to elephant care.
Elephants in TN are maintained in forests camps located in areas such as Theppakkadu in Mudumalai and Kozhikamuthi in Anamalai, which are staffed by members of local tribal communities like the Malasars and Irulas. “Training is now given through instruction by retired handlers using traditional methods.
They have, however, never been exposed to other elephant camps or training centres which adopt best practices with modern scientific approach,” Sahu said. The state government expects the trained team to share their knowledge with other handlers after they return.