Guruvayur Temple Will Soon be Showcasing its Elephants

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KERALA, INDIA, August 3, 2006: Ever since 1975, a compound attached to the Sree

Krishna temple in Guruvayur has been home for captive elephants donated to the

temple by patrons. The compound is now home for 65 elephants who are cared for

by 200 mahouts. Recognizing an opportunity, the Kerala Tourism Department wants

to convert the elephant yard into a tourist attraction. With support from the

state government to the tune of US$1.1 million, visitors will have a chance to

watch the pachyderms bathe, feed the elephants and watch how they are cared for.

The news release explains further, " Hundreds of thousands of devotees come to

Guruvayur temple every year, and each one makes it a point to visit this

elephant yard here. Each of the 65 elephants were an offering at the Guruvayur

temple made by devotees including former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalitha

and Malayalam superstar Suresh Gopi. Due to lack of space, temple authorities

have now stopped accepting elephants as offerings. Authorities say maintaining

them is a huge task, the pachyderms consume 11,000 kgs of palm leaves and 5,000

kg of hybrid grass each day besides tons of bananas and rice. Around 30,000

litres of water is required everyday to bathe the elephants, which is done by

200 mahouts. The Devaswom Board spends $3.3 million each year -- that's

$51,000/elephant -- for their upkeep and is now looking forward to their

elephants becoming a major tourist attraction. "