Allegations on inaction false and baseless, says Kerala Chief Wildlife Warden

Kerala Chief Wildlife Warden Surendrakumar stated that the allegations made about the department’s lack of action in attempting to rescue the elephant are false and baseless. He also said that the Forest Department had taken all possible measures to rescue and save the life of the elephant.

Thiruvananthapuram: Forest Department has come up with more revelations on the incident of the pregnant wild elephant’s death and the efforts taken by the department to rescue the injured elephant against the allegations of inaction.

The elephant had succumbed to severe injuries on its jaw and mouth on May 27 after it had accidentally chomped on a pig cracker (Pannippadakkam in Malayalam) snare - food stuffed with crackers - meant to target wild boars in the area, in Thiruvizhamkunnu zone, Mannarkkad Forest Division of Palakkad District Kerala.

Speaking to the ETV Bharat, Surendrakumar IFS, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) and Chief Wildlife Warden (CWW), Kerala, said that the allegations made about the department’s lack of action in attempting to rescue the elephant are false and baseless.

Elaborating on how the Forest department dealt with the case, Surendrakumar said, "The elephant was spotted outside the forest range on May 23. The forest personnel sent it back to the forest on the same day, as they do usually. The elephant was again spotted standing in Velliyar River on May 25. That is when they realised there is some problem with the elephant."

He further said that the Forest Department's veterinary doctors were called in and they reached and examined the elephant from a distance. "They said that the health status of the elephant is very poor that it cannot be tranquilised as it stood in the water. Attempts to tranquilise and treat it while in the river could be fatal," Surendrakumar said.

"Two Kumki elephants were sent from Palakkad to help in the rescue operation. As directed by the doctors, the plan was to bring the elephant out of the water with the help of Kumki elephants and then treat it. Though Kumki elephants reached the spot, the condition of the elephant deteriorated before anything could be done. Soon, it died while remaining in the water on May 27," he added.

Read:64 wild elephants killed in human-animal conflicts in a decade, less compared to other states: Experts

Allegations on the inaction by the Forest Department officers and that they did not respond quickly on the information about a wild elephant standing in Velliyar River in Thiruvizhamkunnu area, are not true, said Surendrakumar.

The Forest Department had taken all possible measures to rescue and save the life of the elephant, he said.

"One must understand that it was not a tamed domestic elephant or a human being to just go and start treatment. It was an injured wild animal. There are certain protocols to be followed while trying to rescue a wild animal. Accordingly, the forest department made all possible efforts to rescue the elephant," he said.

"Strong action would be taken against the offenders in this case. They would be tried fairly and action would be strong and consistent so that such cases won’t repeat in future," the CWW said.

Besides, a state-wide combing operation has been launched along all the Forest boundaries. It has been already done in Palakkad on Thursday.

Ten teams of Forest officers, about 70 forest staff put together, have combed a large area of forest boundaries, which serves as an interface between people and forest.

Read:Kerala elephant death: Explosive was stuffed inside coconut to snare wild boars, confesses accused

The officers have not found anything unusual. The combing operation continues in other parts of the State and is to go on.

Other plans include talking to the people living along these boundaries through Jan Jagratha Samithi.

The forest staff will be in touch with the people in their respective areas and seek cooperation in dealing with human-animal conflict.

The Forest department has taken other measures like trenches, electric fences, rail fences and granite walls in many parts of the State Forests boundaries. Even then, animals do come out as the boundaries are too large.

The Forest Department compensates heftily for the crop loss incurred by farmers in the bordering inhabited areas due to wild animals attack, every year.

Surendrakumar further said that the animals have been moving in their habitats which was intruded by humans later. So it is the animals who must be complaining, not human beings.

"I am complaining, on behalf of all the animals, that people should be tolerant as it was the animals’ habitat earlier. Humans can share the habitat like they used to do earlier. Nowadays, intolerance is increasing towards all animals. I request people to cooperate and share the ecosystem with the animals. We are not the owners of the ecosystem. We are just one among them," added Surendranath.