JOIN USThe frustrated female elephant which damaged a Forest department jeep, after finding it difficult to enter the forests due to the presence of a trench, is now struggling for life.
Following the elephant attack, Forest department officials had aimed fire at it, injuring it in the process. The elephant, which had been running astray all of Wednesday, later slipped into a deep lake near Nagapura Tribal Settlement, Block 6, in the taluk, and has shown no signs of getting up from the water, since.
With department veterinarians in Hassan district, there are no doctors available to either rescue or treat the animal, as it continues to lie in the water. A local veterinarian’s assistance was taken to superficially treat the elephant on Thursday.
Efforts were on to drive the two elephants, which had entered human habitation, back into forests since Wednesday morning. Even though one elephant entered the forest, the female elephant camped at Block 6 of the settlement.
The tired and anxious elephant, which had been followed around by huge crowds, had attacked the Forest department jeep. It had tossed the vehicle, which hit a boulder and fell. The bonnet had been damaged, but nobody was hurt as the Forest staff were on foot, away from the jeep.
Conservator of Forests, Hunsur Wildlife Division, R Gokul, who is New Delhi, told Deccan Herald that it was an “unfortunate incident”.
“The officials had to aim fire at the elephant, as it had turned violent and had begun to charge. There are provisions to shoot elephants, when human life is at stake,” he said.The elephant will be rescued only if it is in a condition to pull through, he added.