Kathmandu (dpa) – Nepal staged its annual elephant beauty pageant Wednesday, with the creatures parading along a catwalk before a panel of judges in the south-west of the country. The beauty pageant for the pachyderms was held in Chitwan district's Sauraha, as a part of a local festival for tourists. Keepers spent nearly three hours bathing the elephants, oiling their bodies and painting their toenails and backs in colorful patterns. They were then covered with colorful silk cloths. True to her name, 15-year old Beauty Kali won the title of the Elephant Beauty Queen. The elephants were judged on the basis of their decoration, discipline and hygiene. The Nepal Tourism Board, which organized the event, said it was a way of encouraging elephant keepers to pay better attention to the pachyderms. Animal rights activists have been very critical of the way the some elephants are kept in Nepal. Government figures say there are 170 wild elephants in Nepal and about the same number who are domesticated. Elephants are used by resorts in the Chitwan district for jungle safaris, and as jungle patrols by the government. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/8OUBB Tags: Animal Abuse, Elephant, Festival, Nepal Section: Animals, East Asia