Showing posts with label mettupalayam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mettupalayam. Show all posts

5 April 2018

2018 Tamil Nadu Elephant Rejuvenation Camp



Today (April 5, 2018) the article “Temple Elephants Find Friends and Care at This Retreat in India,” with lots of great photographs has appeared in "The New York Times". The article is about Tamil Nadu's recently concluded 48-day Elephant Rejuvenation Camp that was conducted at Mettupalayam.


The article starts:

"It’s not every day that you spot an elephant riding in the back of a truck.

Selvaprakash Lakshmanam wasn’t the only person taking photographs as he documented a temple elephant’s trip from its solitary and sacred home to an elephant rejuvenation camp in southern India. He had first visited the camp, in the state of Tamil Nadu, about five years ago, and he returned in 2015. On that visit, he made portraits of elephants and their keepers, known as mahouts. But he wanted to witness the journey — one that begins by training an elephant to get into a truck.

Some of the elephants had traveled hundreds of miles to reach the camp, he said. “So I wanted to see what the preparation is.”

To read the rest of the article click on this link here.


Several Elephants getting a hose down



A worker's turn to "water-up"

3 January 2018

Arunachala's Elephant Rukku off to Rejuvenation Camp 2018



Arunachala’s own female Elephant—Rukku, set off early this morning (Wednesday 3 January, 2018) from Arunachaleswarar Temple (where she is in service) on her journey to the annual Elephant rejuvenation camp at Mettupalayam (near Coimbatore).

The camp will last up to 48 days and host approximately 50 captive elephants from different parts of the State. Emphasis will be taken on monitoring and improving the health and well-being of the elephant participants.


HAVE A HAPPY HOLIDAY RUKKU AND HAVE A GREAT TIME RE-ACQUAINTING WITH ALL YOUR CAMP FRIENDS FROM PREVIOUS YEARS—AN ELEPHANT NEVER FORGETS!!!!




Our precious Rukku loaded up at Arunachaleswarar Temple

Getting comfy ready for her long road trip



Nice to see a goodly supply of bananas and greenery for her trip
Rukku at the start of her trip to Camp





[Need to give a big thumbs up to our previous and now deceased Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa; as it was her love of animals that inspired the introduction of this annual captive Elephant rejuvenation camp in Tamil Nadu. 

Also well earned thanks to the current State Government for continuing with this excellent programme].