Belur Makhna: The Wild Tusker Troubler of Kerala (image- representational image-pixabay)
Elephant attacks have become a major issue in Wayanad, a district of Kerala. Numerous deaths have been reported recently which has sparked protests and the natives have come demanding immediate action.
Two weeks ago, a 20-year-old Belur Makhna trampled a man to death on February 10th in Wayanad’s Mananthavady municipality. The wild tusker successfully eluded a strong team of forest guards, range officers veterinarians, and four trained elephants. Belur Makhna was successful in unleashing a wave of terror in the district of Wayanad for the past two weeks.
The elephant after being elusive for several days, the Kerala government has declared the mission to capture the elephant is canceled. The 15 long-day hunt was called off on Sunday.
As per the TOI report, the elephant has returned to its Karnataka territory and the officials have agreed that the elephant will be monitored.
On February 10, the wild tusker killed Panachiyil Ajeesh, a tractor driver, at Padamala near Mananthavady. Later following the public protest, the Kerala government decided to tranquilise the killer elephant.
Hyderabad-based sharpshooter Nawab Shafath Ali Khan was appointed by the Kerala government to capture the elephant. But due to the heavy disapproval of the Rapid Responsive Team, Nawab and his team had to pack up on Friday.
The Wayanad RRT is known for their efficiency. They have tranquilized and translocated more than a hundred animals that trouble humans, including wild tusker Arikomban, Kalloor Komban and PM2.
Despite the efforts of 200 forest guards, they were unable to locate the jumbo due to poor signals from its radio collar transmitter. The Karnataka Forest minister Eshwar Khandre after interacting with the forest officials told TOI that the elephant is back in the state’s territory.
The elephant managed to cross the Kabani River and entered the Karnataka forest, he said. He further stated that the animal is currently roaming along Kabani at the intersection of Bandipur and Nagarahole tiger reserves and the GPS location of the elephant’s radio collar has revealed that the elephant is inside Karnataka’s territory.
