Punnathur kotta - Location : 2 km from the Guruvayoor
Sree Krishna Temple, Thrissur District.
Punnathur kotta - Visiting hours : 9:30 am to 5:30
pm.
Over forty elephants are groomed at the Punnathur kotta ( kotta
means 'fort'). Many elephants are brought as ritual offering to the
temple. You can spend a whole day with these huge mammals here.
Watching the naughty baby elephants' playful antics is an entertaining
experience. The place provides you an opportunity to watch how the
sick elephants are medically treated in the traditional manner. One
can also watch the training given to the elephants for various ritualistic
performances.
Remember you are in the land where people worship the elephant-faced
god Lord Ganapathy. Grooming elephants was considered a status symbol.
With the decay of the joint family system, supporting elephants became
a financial burden for many families. Gradually various temple managements
took the charge of looking after these animals. Anyhow, even today
elephants play a key role in Kerala's fairs and festivals.
Punnathur kotta - Getting there: Guruvayoor is about
32 km from Thrissur town.
Punnathur kotta - Nearest railway station: Guruvayoor
station is at a walkable distance from the shrine.
Punnathur kotta - Nearest airport: Cochin International
Airport, about 58 km from Thrissur town
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