Escalating elephant rampages during festival season raise serious concerns

Alarming rise in elephant rampages during festival season causing casualties and property damage, sparking concerns among activists and public.

As the festival season peaks in the State, coinciding with the scorching summer heat, the alarming rise in incidents where elephants brought in for celebrations run amok have become a serious concern.

These unpredictable elephant rampages have resulted in both loss of human life and widespread property damage, sparking concerns among animal rights activists and the public.

On Tuesday night alone, two separate incidents in the Thrissur district saw two elephants running wild, adding to the growing number of casualties. At Minalur, an elephant Ukkan’s Kunju, turned unruly and attacked its mahouts. The elephant uprooted trees and an electric post.

In the second incident, elephant Thadathavila Sivan, which was brought for the Kumba Bharani celebrations of Makkalikkavu Temple, near Kunnamkulam, turned violent. Traffic was disrupted for hours in both incidents.

“Since the start of the current festive season, 74 elephants have turned unruly, resulting in the deaths of six people and leaving 64 others injured, 12 of them critically,” said V.K. Venkitachalam, secretary of the Heritage Animal Task Force.

One of the root causes behind these incidents, according to Mr. Venkitachalam, is the lack of proper checks on the elephants participating in the parades. “Many of these elephants are either in musth or have a violent history that goes unexamined. In many cases, elephants are paraded with fake certificates, and a significant number are either handicapped or ailing,” he added.

There are strict regulations governing the parading of elephants, such as limiting the duration of their participation to six hours, preventing them from being paraded two consecutive days, and prohibiting transportation between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m.