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Taming tuskers, not a jumbo task
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Though the recent incidents in Kerala have put pachyderms in poor light, it is not an elephantine problem to make the animal fall in line, if the mahout knows its moods and showers affection, writes PRINCE FREDERICK.
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NOT VERY long ago, Ernakulam district in Kerala witnessed two separate incidents (within days of each other) where elephants gored their respective mahouts to death. A television channel had kept the camera rolling, and the world soon witnessed the mayhem with open-mouthed horror. After these gory incidents, many people have developed sympathy towards mahouts and displeasure towards elephants. The two incidents have indeed put pachyderms in an unfavourable light. But if the truth be told, elephants are as much victims as are mahouts.
The violence of a male elephant in `musth' is no different from the violence displayed in natural phenomena such as a cyclone. The tusker is behaving in the only way he knows to behave under the circumstances. "During the `non-musth' period, a male elephant would register one nanogram of testesterone per ml of serum, and during the `musth' period, there would be seven nanograms of testesterone per ml of serum," says Dr. M.G. Jayathangaraj, assistant professor, Department of Wildlife Science, Madras Veterinary College.
This hormonal change is not bad in itself; in fact, it is profoundly normal, as it is a sign of the tusker's ability for procreative activity. What is condemnable is man's interference in this natural process.
When an elephant is in `musth', it is often a thin line that divides irritability and violent behaviour; and the giant herbivore stands very close to the line beyond which mayhem is waiting to happen.
"Musth period varies from elephant to elephant. Generally, it lasts for one to three months. In rare cases, the elephant could be in `musth' for as long as seven months. By and large, tuskers undergo what is called `silent' musth; the period passes off without any noticeable sign of the elephant's state," says Dr. Jayathangaraj. "The elephant (in musth) should be quarantined. Great attention has to be paid to his diet. Elephants are extremely vulnerable to hyperthermia; and during `musth' this vulnerability gets compounded. So, lots of water and greater quantities of food should be given to him. Curd, cucumber and onion are also known to be given to such an elephant. We can also postpone or minimise the effect of `musth' through drugs such as Frutamide; but it will not be without its side-effects."
R. Narayanan was a mahout from 1948 to 1974 in the Sri Ranganathar temple in Sri Rangam. He was in charge of a huge tusker, Gopal.
"Gopal would be in `musth' for three months every year. He would be utterly intractable during the period. Everyone would keep a safe distance from him," he says. "The mahout knows when his elephant is in `musth'. The "madha-neer" is a giveaway. The two sad incidents in Kerala could have been avoided if the tuskers had not been taken out. In Kerala, most of the elephants in circulation there are tuskers. Since female elephants are not subject to such quirks of nature, it is so much safer to have them. In Tamil Nadu, especially in Chennai, you find only female elephants." Today a resident of Manapakkam in Chennai, Narayanan has three female elephants, which he rents out for temple processions and other functions. Interestingly, the trio - Prasanna (65), Sumitra (45) and Seetha Rani (35) - were all bought from Kerala.
The land of backwaters is also the land of pachyderms. Most of the elephants in the country are from Kerala. The State has the most number of elephant owners; and the competition among them is heavy. To stay in business, the animal has to be taken out, `musth' or not. In the process, it is the poor mahout who is caught in the crossfire — between the owner and the elephant. Since the mahout lives a hand-to-mouth existence, he has to unloose the elephant, even if he knows that by doing so he would be dicing with death.
"The mahout has to be affectionate to the elephant. This is a genial animal which develops a special fondness for his first mahout." The second mahout, just as his title suggests, is second in the elephant's affections.
There is a special goad called "Angusham", it will not draw blood, but can cause excruciating pain. This is used in Kerala, but has been banned in Tamil Nadu. When an elephant is in `musth', such "instruments of torture" are a strict no-no. They can provoke the elephant to frenzied anger.
"Even in the non-musth state, a male elephant can be intractable at times. It takes a sensitive and able mahout to make the beast fall in line. He should know when to be affectionate and when to be strict. There are 108 "varmam" by which the tusker can be brought under control. But, to mahouts today, they must read like Greek."
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