Tamil Nadu forest department on Tuesday said that the rogue elephant, ‘Arikomban’, that was captured from Cumbum town and relocated…
Representational Photo: Twitter @stae_elephants
Tamil Nadu forest department on Tuesday said that the rogue elephant, ‘Arikomban’, that was captured from Cumbum town and relocated to Tirunelveli forest, is healthy.
The forest department in a statement said that the animal had acclimatised with the new conditions and was taking enough food and water.
When ‘Arikomban’ was in Chinnakanal forest in Idukki district of Kerala, the pachyderm used to raid several homes and ration shops in the area for rice. The wild elephant used to destroy shops and homes and is alleged to have killed a few people.
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After several complaints were raised against the wild elephant, the Kerala forest department decided to capture the elephant and convert it into a ‘Kumki’ elephant. However, the Kerala High Court ordered to capture the elephant and to release in deep forest so that it don’t create a menace.
The elephant was captured after firing several tranquilisers on it by the elite team of Kerala forest officials led by Dr Arun Zakariah, the veterinarian who is credited with capturing several wild elephants. The elephant was captured from Chinnakanal on April 29, and later released to the Periyar National Park.
The elephant reached human habitation in Cumbum town and the Tamil Nadu forest department captured it again on June 5. Later, ‘Arikomban’ was relocated to deep forest in Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu.
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