Rogue tusker Chinnathambi, named thus by local residents, has been wreaking havoc in the Thadagam Valley near Coimbatore, with several raids on agricultural fields.
On Friday, he was tranquillised and moved out, bringing relief to farmers.
The five-hour operation was code-named ‘Chinnathambi Gaja Yatra’, referring to the plan to get him back to the forest, just as his companion, christened Vinayagan, was moved to Mudumalai 40 days ago.
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The job was accomplished with the help of four ‘kumkis’ (trained elephants).
The two tuskers had raided crops and houses in the area, which is frequented by elephant herds in search of food, for months.
As agitated farmers’ insisted on action, Forest Department personnel got orders to tranquillise both and move them.
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Chinnathambi was spotted at a place close to where Vinayagan was tranquillised, and the ‘kumkis’ moved in to corner him close to the Anuvavi Subramaniya Swamy temple.
The first dart that was fired failed to penetrate his hide, leaving half the sedative in the syringe. The second dart, however, brought Chinnathambi under the control before dawn on Friday.
But a surprise awaited the personnel when they approached the animal: a female elephant and a calf were in the vicinity. It then turned into a challenge to get the tusker away from the female and calf.
Final dart
The female elephant charged at the personnel, but ‘kumkis’ Vijay from Mudumalai and Khaleem from Anamalai Tiger Reserve were able to chase it away along with the calf into the forest.
A final dart sent Chinnathambi into a slumber and helped complete the operation. He was boarded onto a truck, and a radio collar was fitted with help from WWF.
Not everything went according to plan, however, and both tusks of the elephant suffered damage when it was lodged in the truck.
The elephant remains healthy, officials clarified.
The operation to tranquillise Chinnathambi proved to be way more difficult compared to the operation carried out to shift Vinayagan, said the officials.
The kumkis were made familiar with the terrain and anti-depredation squad watchers kept monitoring Chinnathambi and were waiting for the target animal to reach a terrain far from human habitations and slopes to capture it.
‘Chinnathambi Gaja Yatra’ aimed to shift the animal from a fragmented forest to a natural habitat, said Deepak Srivastava, Chief Conservator of Forests - Coimbatore Circle, who headed a 60- member team. The members included District Forest Officer D. Venkatesh, Assistant Conservator of Forests C. Dinesh Kumar, and Range Officer S. Suresh. The veterinary team led by N.S. Manoharan included K. Ashokan, N. Kalaivanan and E. Vijayaraghavan. Retired forest official S. Thangaraj Panneerselvam was also roped in.
Mr. Srivatsava told the media that the officials have been monitoring movements of the elephant for the last few days.
The captured elephant was likely to be released near Top Slip, near Pollachi.
P. Kandasamy, secretary of Tamil Nadu Vivasayigal Sangham, said the two elephants were raiding crops and houses for almost six months. The two elephants were used to soft foods and were not getting back to forest. Translocating them will give relief but will not solve the issue in that area completely.