Calls to do away with elephants, fireworks in temple festivals get louder in Kerala

Sree Narayana Guru’s call to do away with fireworks and elephant parades in temple festivals is gathering traction, even as the State is yet to come out of the shock of the firecracker accident in Thrissur, which claimed 15 lives.

Guru’s call ‘Kariyum venda, Karimarunnum venda’ (no elephants and no fireworks) is being widely quoted in social media campaigns to move away from the use of elephants and high-intensity gunpowder displays in the wake of the recent accident.