Elephants will be adorned and offered their favorite food: 7-day Elephant Festival in Madhya Pradesh will run until September 30
The Elephant Festival is being celebrated with great pomp in the national parks of Madhya Pradesh. Elephants are being worshipped and offered their favorite food. They are decorated and displayed for public viewing in Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve. Information about elephant social behavior is also being provided.
Elephants play a vital role in wildlife tracking, patrolling, and rescue in the Tiger Reserves. The purpose of the event is to raise public awareness about the continued presence of wild elephants in Bandhavgarh and to promote the spirit of service, care, and conservation of elephants.
The Elephant Festival is being organized at Rama Elephant Camp, Tala, Bandhavgarh, in Shahdol's Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve from September 25th to September 30th. During the Elephant Festival, the elephants are provided with complete rest and their favorite food.
There are 15 elephants in the camp
The park management has dedicated this year's Elephant Festival to the rejuvenation of elephants. There are a total of 15 elephants in the camp, including 9 males and 6 females. Gautam, the oldest elephant in the camp, is 79 years old and retired, while Ganga, the youngest elephant in the camp, is only one year old.
Elephants were bathed early in the morning
On the first day of the Elephant Festival, the elephants were bathed early in the morning in the Charan Ganga River, where they frolicked in the water. After their bath, they returned to the camp, where they were massaged with neem and castor oil. Wildlife experts took care of their health by checking their teeth, feet, and giving them medicine for worms.
Elephants were given their favorite foods
While this was happening, the elephants were decorated with sandalwood paste. They were also given their favorite foods, like sugarcane, pears, coconuts, jaggery, corn, bananas, apples, guavas, and bread. A doctor decides their diet, which includes special minerals and energy foods.
Elephants were let into the open forest
After eating, the elephants were let into the open forest from the afternoon until evening. There, they enjoyed mud baths, played in the pond, and walked around the forest. During the Elephant Festival, people are allowed to visit the park from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. They can worship the elephants, feed them, and show their respect.
Elephant mahouts and their helpers are also given health checkups
Not only the elephants living in the camp, but also the staff who care for them receive special honors during the Elephant Festival. The elephant mahouts and their helpers are also given health checkups. They are also given special training regarding the challenges and current and future changes facing elephants.
Elephant Rejuvenation Camp at Sanjay Tiger Reserve, Sidhi
The grand Elephant Festival 2025 is being held at the Khairijheel Elephant Camp in Sidhi. MLA Kunwar Singh Tekam inaugurated the festival by worshipping the elephants and offering fruits. He distributed torches, mosquito nets, and bags to the mahouts and fodder cutters. This event is held annually to promote the health and care of elephants.
Special Care for Elephants
The elephants named Bapu, Bharat, Chitra, and Shambhavi are part of the event. During this time, they will be given special fruits like bananas, apples, papayas, sugarcane, coconuts, and other foods along with their usual meals.
Specialist doctors from Jabalpur are taking care of the elephants by trimming their tusks and nails, giving them foot massages with neem oil, and checking their health. The mahouts (elephant caretakers) and fodder cutters will also get health checkups.
There will be discussions and sports programs for everyone involved. The elephants are not doing any work while they are at the camp, allowing them to relax.
Prakash Kumar Pandey