The elephants to be paraded for Thrissur Pooram will be examined on May 3 and 4 by a 40-member team from the Animal Welfare Department.
The team will check the insurance cover for the elephants, whether it has any signs of ‘musth’, wounds or deformities and whether it has any history of unruly nature.
The mahouts will also be under scanner. Alcoholics and drug addicts will not be allowed to control the elephants. A squad of mahouts from the Elephant Owners Multiple Society and the Elephant Emergency Critical Care Unit will accompany the elephants.
The authorities have made norms under the Captive Elephants Management and Maintenance Rules strict following protests of animal rights activists.
While the elephants of Thiruvambadi wing will be examined at CMS School, elephants of Paramekkavu wing will be examined at Paramekkavu temple compound. Elephants of other temples will also be examined.
