Elephants got a new home as India’s first Elephant Village was inaugurated at Kunda on Saturday. The mahawats [keepers] moved into newly-built houses amid celebrations at the village which is the first of its kind. “'I am so moved as a four-decades-old dream of Mahawat community has come true,” said Abdul Rashid, the president of Elephant Owners association.
Rajasthan tourism minister Bina Kak inaugurated the Elephant Village and said it would be a great gift to the much-loved elephants. “We have provided 51 houses specially constructed to keep the animals,” she said. The village has been set up to provide a friendly atmosphere to the elephants as well as the mahawats. The government of India has funded the project while the state government also made a contribution.
“As of now, 51 elephants have been accommodated here and each has got its marked house, rest would also get the same,” Ms Kak said. The minister said the village will be developed as tourist spot. Animal lovers and researchers will be free to come here to study the animal, she said. The state government had allotted over 120 bigha land at Kunda for the Elephant Village, which is also close to the historical Amer fort. The village has houses marked for the elephants and it has one-man made pond to provide sufficient water to the animal.
There are 113 elephants ferrying the tourists to the Amer fort. Every year 14 lakh tourists, which includes four lakh foreign tourists, visit the Amer fort. ''The elephant ride is much in demand among the foreign and Indian tourists alike," Shyam Gupta, vice-president of Elephant Owners association said. During tourist season, the tourists lined up for an elephant ride.