Tamil Nadu - Coimbatore   

Elephant herd marches on railway track

COIMBATORE: The herd of four wild elephants that was chased back into the jungles with much difficulty was noticed again on the rail track near Madukkarai on Monday night.

On the night of December 9, the herd (a tusker, two female elephants and a calf) first strayed into Kurichi and Sundarapuram.

Efforts at chasing it back proved counter- productive.

It moved further towards Chettipalayam, near Podanur, 13 km from the reserve forests.

On Monday, the herd got itself holed up in a thorny bush. Owing to increased human interference and disturbance caused by onlookers who burnt tyres, and resorted to howling and hooting, the herd moved further and reached Appanaickenpatti near Sulur about 22 km from the reserve forests on Tuesday.

In these three days, it left three persons injured including two foresters and a watcher.

After four days of treatment, the watcher Perumal died at the hospital last Sunday.

The Forest Department using trained staff, tribal animal trackers, search lights, crackers and trained/tamed kumki elephants Pallavan, Kapildev and Bharani from Top Slip started marching the elephants towards the jungles.

On its return trip to the jungle, the herd chose to rest one-day at Chettipalayam once again and with much difficulty clearing the crowd of onlookers it was chased to Eachanari on Friday and while on the march owing to lack of food and water and infuriated by human disturbance, the herd attacked Mayilsamy (40) of Ammanpudur in Podanur.

Finally on Friday night by Saturday early morning the herd was pushed into Karadimadai forests near Madukkarai.

Even as the officials heaved a sigh of relief, the herd resurfaced on Sunday night near Madukkarai bypass road and the officials chased it back once again into the jungles using search lights and crackers.

The herd without relenting tried to stray into human habitations once again on Monday night and was noticed on the railway track and on the bypass road the motorists had a night marish experience with the trumpeting elephants chasing the vehicles.

The railway gate keeper sounded an alarm and Forest officials rushed once again with search lights and crackers and the herd was chased into the jungle.

Conservator of Forests, Coimbatore Circle, R. Kannan and the District Forest Officer, I. Anwardeen have deputed a team to camp in the area led by Range Officer, A. Soundarrajan.

Officials are contemplating on moving the herd deep into the jungles closer to Siruvani using the kumki elephants to prevent further incidents of the herd straying in once again in search of fodder and water.

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