S. RAMESH | ERODE, May 8, 2013
A herd of four tuskers that strayed more than 20 km. into the mainland near Punjai Puliyampatti in Erode district was driven back into the forests after a 12-hour long struggle.
The tuskers, which could have come out of the forests in search of water and food in the wee hours of Tuesday, were spotted by the farmers around 5 a.m. near Nambiyur.
Farmers alerted the forest officials immediately.
The elephants entered into the agricultural lands in Modarpalayam village near Nambiyur after crossing three main roads – Mettupalayam road, Punjai Puliyampatti – Sathyamangalam highway and Punjai Puliyampatti – Kavilipalayam road and the Lower Bhavani project canal.
The village was located about 20 km. away from the forest boundary.
The forest department mounted a massive operation involving more than 100 personnel, a good number of farmers and police personnel to drive the elephants back into the jungles.
Senior officials led by Conservator of Forests, Erode Circle, A. Venkatesh , rushed to the spot and co-ordinated the exercise.
“We had a hard time because a large number of people gathered to get a glimpse of the tuskers and our exercise. We had to allocate 25 of our personnel just to manage the crowd. We had to make sure that elephants were not provoked by the crowd,” Mr. Venkatesh said.
Officials said the herd, which was often spotted near the Bhavanisagar dam site, was not used to travel long into the mainland. This was the second time the herd strayed into the villages that were located far away from the forests, they pointed out.
Forest officials used fire crackers and drums to chase the elephants back into the forests.
“We also set fire to the coconut leaves and firewood to drive the elephants back,” Mr. Venkatesh said.
The forest department had created temporary waterholes in more than 10 places and filling them with water on a regular basis. “There is adequate food and water available in the forests.
The recent rains rejuvenated the natural water sources in the jungles,” he added.
Source: http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-miscellaneous/jumbos-driven-back-to-forest-after-12hour-struggle/article4694322.ece
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