BHUBANESWAR, INDIA, June 19, 2004: For the second consecutive year, there were no elephants at the famous car festival of Lord Jagannath held June 19. As per tradition, an elephant is used to lead the procession of the Puri king, when he comes for ‘chherapanhara’ (the ritual sweeping of the chariot floor) on the ‘Ratha Yatra’ day. Getting an elephant for this purpose is becoming increasingly difficult for the temple authorities. The Nandankanan zoo refused to provide an elephant without permission from the Central Zoo Authority. Also, zoo elephants are seen to be unsuitable, as they are not used to huge crowds. Two years back, an elephant ‘Laxmi’, was brought all the way from Varanasi to perform the ritual, but it died on its way back, causing a national outcry which prompted the authorities to stop the ritual altogether. There have also been allegations of violation of the wildlife protection Act, as use of wild animals is against law. Wildlife officials point out the unfortunate incident in 1999, when two elephants went berserk and damaged houses in villages. They assert that it is in the interest of human security to discontinue the ritual.
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