Elephants at the Ayutthaya Elephant Palace enjoy fruits on the National Elephant Day on Monday. (Photo by Chanat Katanyu)Elephant kraals across the country held merit-making ceremonies and organised buffet feasts for their animals on Monday, which was Thai Elephant Day. At Lampang in the North, the Thai Elephant Conservation Centre in Hang Chat district dressed up 40 elephants to offer alms to nine monks, who blessed them with holy water in return. The government has designated March 13 as Thai Elephant Day since 1998, to raise awareness of the animal's importance. There are an estimated 2,700 "domesticated" elephants in the country, a drop from about 100,000 in 1850, according to the Elephant Conservation Centre in Surin.

Source: Bangkok Post March 13, 2017 09:06 UTC