Crop-raiding jumbo Vinayagan captured, sent to MTR after 10-hour long struggle

Yielding to pressure from farmers, the Coimbatore forest department set in motion the operation to capture the jumbo, weighing around 4.5 tonnes early in the morning. 

It was darted by wildlife veterinarian Manoharan around 6.30 am at the Thadagam Valley on the foothills of Western Ghats. A couple of more sedation shots were required to bring the restless animal under control. 

While in sedation, the forest department staff tied its four limbs with ropes. It took a while for the team to radio collar the tusker before shifting it onto a lorry with great struggle. 

Expert kumkis Wasim, Vijay, Komban and Cheran pitched in by goading the captured elephant named Vinayagan to board the lorry. Earth movers were also pressed into service.

Deepak Srivastava, Chief Conservator of Forests, Coimbatore Circle, said that the elephant will be released into the dense jungle that links Bandipur, Mudumalai and Wayanad forests. 

“The movement of the animal, which is habituated to raid crops and intrude into residential neighbourhoods, will be monitored with GPS technology. This jumbo turned aggressive and went on an attacking spree after people began to tease during its raid ventures,” he said. 

The jumbo, which commenced its journey around 6 pm from Coimbatore, is likely to reach MTR after eight hours trip on the hill stretch. “If required, the animal will be administered with sedation during the course of the journey. Police were also asked to ensure there are no traffic hurdles en route on the hill stretch,” said Srivastava. 

Meanwhile, the forest department is also gearing up to capture another tusker, ‘Chinna Thambi,’ which has also been creating trouble in the neighbourhood. 

“Our first mission was to capture Chinna Thambi. When we attempted to drive the jumbo from rough terrains to plains near CRPF camp; Chinna Thambi unexpectedly changed its course to retreat into the forests in Palamalai area. Hence, Vinayagan was captured first,” said a forest department staff.  Both the animals were camping in Coimbatore outskirts for the last six months. 

The forest department was initially wary of capturing the jumbos after Ajay A Desai, a consultant of Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF) expressed caution against translocation and instead suggested for ‘negative conditioning’ of the problematic animals. His observation came after studying the behaviour of the animals for a few days on the request of the forest department. 

However, the forest department was forced to yield to the pressure of farmers, who suffered wide damage to crops because of the wild jumbos. In fact the jumbo operation commenced a day after a large number of farmers from Coimbatore met senior forest department officials in Chennai demanding to either relocate or shoot down the tuskers.  

Public from the neighbouring villages turned up in large numbers to see the capture of the elephant.