Mysuru: The second batch of seven more elephants including the champion of elephants Krishna which will be taking part in Dasara for the first time, will arrive at palace on August 31.

The second batch of elephants are Gopalaswamy and Krishna from Mattigodu camp (Nagarhole forest); Vikram, Gopi, Harsha and Prashantha from Dubare forest and Drona from Mattigodu camp. The elephants will join Arjuna, Balarama and company for rehearsal after a day’s rest. The elephants will be put on a special diet to gain additional weight and will walk along the procession route twice a day to get acclimatised to the noise and crowd.

It can be brought to light that, the first batch of eight elephants-howdah elephant Arjuna, Abhimanyu, Gajendra, Balarama, Varalakshmi, Vijaya, Cauvery and Bheema had arrived on August 17 and started walking on the procession route from the very next day.

Krishna the champion elephant:

The 56-year-old Krishna, which is called champion among elephants in capturing operations, is for the first time, participating in Dasara. After Abhimanyu, the elephant which is known across the country for its ability to capture wild elephants is Krishna.

Yedukondalu, DCF (Wildlife), Mysuru said, “Krishna which is called a champion elephant for capturing more than 50 wild elephants will also be part of the seven-member team.”