By P. Karunakharan

As hundreds watched in silence, Sri Lankan mahouts shed tears as eight orphaned baby elephants they had raised for four years were released into the wild.

There was no hiding the love the mahouts felt for the young elephants as the eight animals were given a final dung bath to prepare for a new life in the Sri Lankan forests.

The dung bath rids them of the human smell, which would keep other herds away from the baby elephants.

As hundreds watched, the six male and two female elephants took their time making their way out of the Udawalawe Elephant Transit Home, about 200 km southeast of Colombo.

They were the eighth group of orphan elephants to be released into the wild in the last decade.

Over the years, Sri Lankan authorities have taken care of scores of orphaned baby elephants in sanctuaries