Forest officials have expressed satisfaction over arrangements made at the shelter owned by Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam to maintain two of its elephants, Andal and Premi alias Lakshmi.
G. Kiran, District Forest Officer, led the team that visited the new enclosure set up by the temple at Panchakarai on the banks of the Kollidam recently. The team checked whether the temple elephants were maintained as per the Tamil Nadu Captive Elephants (Management and Maintenance) rules, 2011. The shelter and an exclusive pond for the pachyderms to take bath were scrutinised extensively.
Mr. Kiran told The Hindu that he was satisfied with the arrangements made for maintaining the captive elephants. They were kept in enclosures that were airy and had plenty of light. They were kept close to the temple. Located in a coconut grove, the shelter had a good ambience with natural surroundings.
He said the enclosure was located on 5.47 acres of land. The 10 square metre-pond had a depth of 1.70 metres. The elephants took bath on a daily basis and had sufficient space to take rest and eat food.
The inspection was conducted at the direction of the Chief Wildlife Warden. A report had been sent to him, detailing the arrangements for maintaining the temple elephants.
S. Marimuthu, Joint Commissioner, Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangam, said fresh water was filled daily in the pond. After the elephants took bath, it was emptied. An exclusive walking path had been established for the mahouts to facilitate the elephants to walk. Both elephants were taken for a 10-km walk daily.
As per the recommendations of veterinary doctors, he said natural fodder and cooked food were given to the elephants. Arrangements had been made for their health inspection every fortnight.
A team led by N.V.K. Ashraf of Wildlife Trust of India inspected the health of Andal and Lakshmi a few days ago.