2 months ago
1
A two-month spell of hostility successful the villages of Gudipala mandal successful Chittoor territory ended connected Friday nighttime aft wood officials successfully drove backmost a 13-member herd of chaotic elephants into the forests of Tamil Nadu done a coordinated Kumki operation.
The herd had strayed into a forested vale on the inter-State borderline successful the archetypal week of January and often raided crops successful Panatur and Muthavallur villages. The elephants, on with 2 calves calved during their enactment successful the valley, often moved adjacent to houses astatine night, leaving villagers anxious for respective weeks.
Forest Range Officer Chittoor M. Pattabhi said 4 trained Kumki elephants were deployed astatine the rima of the vale connected the nighttime of March 7. “The infinitesimal the herd emerged, the cognition began. By the aboriginal hours of March 8, the elephants moved into the Tamil Nadu forests,” helium said.
However, the herd remained adjacent to the borderline till the evening of March 13, prompting wood teams to proceed monitoring the area. After confirmation that the elephants had moved deeper into the Tamil Nadu forests, the cognition was formally concluded.
Agriculture and horticulture crops worthy astir ₹15 lakh were damaged during the period. A 40-member wood squad camped successful the villages successful shifts, tracking the herd’s nightly question betwixt the vale and the surrounding fields.
With the menace receding, villagers bid farewell to the Kumki squad and mahouts, offering prayers to the trained elephants earlier they returned to their basal campy astatine Palamaner. “Despite rumours of LPG shortage, villagers voluntarily provided cooking state cylinders and adjacent prepared peculiar nutrient for the Kumkis. Their enactment made the cognition memorable,” Mr. Pattabhi said.
