The tragic death of the pregnant elephant has struck a chord with the mahouts in Jaipur. Elephants and mahouts paid tributes to the dead elephant and its unborn calf at Hathi Gaon near Amber Fort on Thursday. They garlanded a picture of the elephant that had been killed by explosives planted in a pineapple and offered flowers.
Speaking to Free Press Journal mahaut Umardeen Mansuri said, “The incident is shocking. We raise elephants like our family members. The birth of a calf is considered the most auspicious occasion in our community. We celebrate it just like the birth of a child. It is impossible to imagine how can anyone kill an elephant.”
Former chief minister Vasundhara Raje, who had been instrumental in the setting up of Hathi Gaon or Elephant Village in Jaipur, has also expressed shock and grief over the incident. “The horrific incident involving a pregnant Elephant in Kerala has left me deeply disturbed. Majestic & sacred, Elephants are held to be the reincarnation of Lord Ganesha. Symbolic of strength & determination, the treatment meted out to them by some unkind souls is shameful. The perpetrators deserve to be punished to the fullest extent of law,” said Raje in a tweet.
Elephants have been a part of Jaipur’s history and culture for over four hundred years. Amber is the only fort in India where elephant rides are an attraction for the foreign and Indian tourists. There are 104 elephants in Amber and only one of them is a male. There have been two instances of female elephants giving birth to calves and it had been an occasion for celebration in the entire mahaut community of Jaipur.
