Efforts underway to arrange for Muharram elephant as Forest Department raises concerns

The Bibi-ka-Alam or Alam-e-Mubarak procession in progress during Muharram, near Charminar, in Hyderabad.
| Photo Credit: File photo

Efforts are underway to clear the decks for the inclusion of an elephant, atop which an alam is traditionally mounted, in the centuries-old Muharram procession in Hyderabad.

According to sources, the Telangana State Waqf Board (TGSWB), along with officials from other departments, have been exploring possibilities for arranging the elephant, as the procession is likely to take place on July 6 or July 7, depending on the sighting of the moon.

Correspondence regarding the arrangement usually takes place between the H.E.H. The Nizam Awqaf Committee, the Nizam’s Religious Trust, and the government. However, it is the Telangana State Waqf Board that bears the costs of transporting and handling the elephant, along with other related expenses. These expenses amount to approximately ₹5 lakh, with an advance paid prior to the animal’s arrival in the city.

“Of the ₹5 lakh, we have already paid ₹1 lakh as an advance to the elephant’s owner. While the owner is based in Delhi, the elephant would have to be brought from Jaipur. The Forest Department has pointed out that the distance to Hyderabad is too great. We are now considering arranging for an elephant from a location closer to Hyderabad, such as Karnataka. Since an elephant is required for Bonalu as well Minister Ponnam Prabhakar is already cognisant of the matter. The issue will be resolved soon,” said TGSWB Chairman Syed Azmatullah Husseni.

Sources noted that except during the COVID-19 pandemic, when lockdown restrictions were in place, the government, over the years, had consistently arranged for an elephant for both Muharram and Bonalu. They expressed confidence that a solution would be found this year as well. The sources also said that both of the Nizam’s panels are on board with the current arrangements.

Meanwhile, Mir Abbas Ali Moosvi of the Anjuman-e-Tahafuz-e-Huqooq-e-Mutawalliyan Mujawareen wa Khadimeen-e-Mauroosi Ashoorkhanajaat, an association of managers of ashoorkhanas, urged the government to provide cash grants to these places of worship ahead of Muharram.

Mr Moosvi pointed out that while the Badshahi Ashoorkhana, a structure that predates the Charminar, and for which he serves as mutawalli, received ₹30,000 in aid, other ashoorkhanas in the city and across the districts — around 700 in total — are in dire need of financial support. He submitted a representation to Minister Ponnam Prabhakar seeking assistance for this purpose.