Madikeri: A wild tusker that allegedly killed an estate labourer at Yadur village in Kodagu on August 9 has been captured by the Forest Department following an extensive operation.
The approximately 32-year-old male elephant was traced and tranquillised around three kilometres from the incident spot on the evening of August 19. It was subsequently shifted to the Dubare Elephant Camp.
120 Forest personnel join capture operation
The capture operation was conducted within the limits of Chembebellur Gram Panchayat using six trained elephants from the Dubare camp.
Around 120 Forest Department personnel participated in the operation. The tusker had reportedly been creating trouble in Yadur of Kannangala village and the Hachchinadu areas.
The Forest Department began the capture operation on August 18, but the elephant managed to evade the teams. The operation resumed the following day, eventually leading to its capture inside an estate near Chembebellur.
Villagers had staged protests
The death of the estate worker on August 9 had triggered protests and road blockades by villagers, who demanded immediate action against the elephant threat.
Following widespread protests after the death of a migrant worker in a wild elephant attack, the State Government had permitted the capture of three male tuskers in the Ammathi-Siddapura region.
The Forest Department has so far captured one of the three elephants. Efforts to capture the remaining two tuskers are expected to resume after a day’s break.
Eight elephant attack deaths reported this year
The latest capture comes amid growing concerns over human-elephant conflict in Kodagu.
According to the report, eight people have lost their lives in elephant attacks in Kodagu since January this year, with the highest number of fatalities reported in the Ammathi-Siddapura areas.
The Forest Department’s ongoing operations are aimed at reducing the threat to people living and working in areas where encounters with wild elephants have become increasingly frequent.