<p>Wild elephants in Kerala have recently made headlines for posing a hazard to vehicles.</p>.<p>A private bus driver in the state was recently forced to drive 8 km in reverse gear when ‘Kabali’, a wild tusker, strode towards the vehicle. On Thursday, too, Kabali forced many drivers to drive backwards.</p>.<p>Forest authorities said that the Kabali was in musth, and hence, it tried to chase away those “provoking him”.</p>.<p>Restrictions are imposed on tourists in the region now, and more forest officials have been deployed to guide the tuskers back to the forest, said divisional forest officer R Lekshmi.</p>.<p>The incident triggered curiosity over the name of the tusker (Kabali), aged around 25.</p>.<p>Forest officials claim that the locals named the tusker ‘Kabali’ as it was first spotted in human settlements a couple of years after the release of Rajinikanth’s film ‘Kabali’.</p>.<p>There is another tusker called ‘Padayappa’, who often gives tense moments to people in Munnar.</p>.<p>Forest officials say it is the good looks of the wild tuskers that prompted locals to name the elephants after Rajinikanth films.</p>.<p>Padayappa, too, was in the news on several occasions for ransacking shops and blocking vehicles.</p>.<p>Passengers of a transport bus near Munnar had a narrow escape from Padayappa’s attack in April this year. Long tusks are the highlight of Padayappa, said a forest official.</p>.<p>Animal Welfare Board former member M N Jayachandran said that wild elephants would normally attack people only when provoked.</p>.<p>He also said that wild animals were entering human settlements mainly due to disturbances caused by humans inside the forest and sought stringent action against illegal activities.</p>
<p>Wild elephants in Kerala have recently made headlines for posing a hazard to vehicles.</p>.<p>A private bus driver in the state was recently forced to drive 8 km in reverse gear when ‘Kabali’, a wild tusker, strode towards the vehicle. On Thursday, too, Kabali forced many drivers to drive backwards.</p>.<p>Forest authorities said that the Kabali was in musth, and hence, it tried to chase away those “provoking him”.</p>.<p>Restrictions are imposed on tourists in the region now, and more forest officials have been deployed to guide the tuskers back to the forest, said divisional forest officer R Lekshmi.</p>.<p>The incident triggered curiosity over the name of the tusker (Kabali), aged around 25.</p>.<p>Forest officials claim that the locals named the tusker ‘Kabali’ as it was first spotted in human settlements a couple of years after the release of Rajinikanth’s film ‘Kabali’.</p>.<p>There is another tusker called ‘Padayappa’, who often gives tense moments to people in Munnar.</p>.<p>Forest officials say it is the good looks of the wild tuskers that prompted locals to name the elephants after Rajinikanth films.</p>.<p>Padayappa, too, was in the news on several occasions for ransacking shops and blocking vehicles.</p>.<p>Passengers of a transport bus near Munnar had a narrow escape from Padayappa’s attack in April this year. Long tusks are the highlight of Padayappa, said a forest official.</p>.<p>Animal Welfare Board former member M N Jayachandran said that wild elephants would normally attack people only when provoked.</p>.<p>He also said that wild animals were entering human settlements mainly due to disturbances caused by humans inside the forest and sought stringent action against illegal activities.</p>
