Thailand honours elephants on National Elephant Day

Thailand celebrated National Elephant Day on Monday, to honour the beloved symbol of the country by feasts of fruits and vegetables, and people are feeding them bananas for celebration.

Traditionally, elephants have been used as work animals or in warfare, however, they are currently under threat, as this annual activity aims to promote awareness about protecting the Thai elephant population and its habitats.

President of the Nong Nooch Tropical Garden, a garden in Chonburi province where a celebration is held on that day, said that elephants are a part of the country’s cultural and historical identity.

“We are now trying to maintain those domesticated elephants and give them food and shelter, If I release all of them to the wild, they won’t survive,” Nooch said

Thailand started celebrating National Elephant Day in 1998 when they declared March 13 a day to the conservation of the elephants.

The annual celebration has three purposes, the first is to show the importance of elephants to the country, the second is to show how their culture depends on elephants, and the third is to raise awareness on ways to protect the elephant population in Thailand.