To the surprise of the local people, elephant herds have been arriving from the nearby forests of Malayattoor division and staying for long at a particular location of the water stream at Anakkulam in Mankulam grama panchayat for years now.
The river here separates the Malayattoor forest division of Ernakulam district from the Mankulam forest division of Idukki district. The elephants that reach here with their calves drink the water bubbles that keep coming up and stay there till the next day. Old timers too vouch for this practice of elephants drinking the bubbling waters, though they do not swim or bathe in the river. Anakkulam is a favourite spot of visitors for its peaceful presence of the jumbos in groups. In the green ambience of Anakkulam, local people are seen playing football on the riverbank close to the wild elephants.
“The animals never move out or come to attack us. We are sure that they are there to savour the water. This is something that we have been seeing for ages now and we don’t bother them and they too do not care about us,” says Sunil, a football player. Close to the elephant hub is a small town with hotels and grocery shops. The wild elephants that come from the forest move back on the same route and there has been no instance of an elephant attack reported at Anakkulam. Local people say that the bubbles in the river bed have a salty flavour making it the favourite of the elephants. Why the water is salty here in an area far away from the sea at an elevation of over 1,450 metres is a mystery. Mankulam Divisional Forest Officer B.N. Nagaraj attributes the phenomenon to the presence of certain minerals underground.
Water samples from the area had been collected and sent for laboratory testing, but the laboratory did not find any salt content in it, he said and added that the water may be coming out through the cavities of the rocks in the riverbed and the force of its movement through the flowing waters could be easily sensed by the animals. Mr. Nagaraj, who had spent long hours watching the behaviour of elephants at Anakkulam, said that only elephant calves bathe there. The herds would be in a sublime mood when they reach there. They seem least bothered on what happens around them, he says. It is said that one can easily become a wildlife photographer by just clicking the wild herds at Anakkulam. In order to give the visitors a close view of the wild elephants, a watch tower is being constructed at Anakkulam. This, Mr Nagaraj said, would help the visitors to see the elephants up close causing least disturbance to them. The aim is to control tourist inflow into Anakkulam, he said.
