Mysuru, Dec 15: In a tragic incident, a wild tusker was killed while trying to cross over the railway fence Nagarahole National Park in Hunsur taluk, of the district this morning. The fence was erected as a barrier along parts of the park to prevent elephants from crossing over to human landscape.
The tusker, which was around 42-year-old had entered human habitation and raided an agricultural field the previous night. It was returning to the Veerahosahalli range of the national park and tried to mount over the railway fence when it got stuck and was left dangling in midair unable to extricate itself from the precarious position.
The Conservator of Forests and Director of Nagarahole National Park Mr.K.M.Narayanaswamy said that examination of the site indicated that the elephant tried to heave itself out of the situation but its diaphragm was crushed by its own weight and died around 5 a.m.
“Three elephants had strayed into villages on the fringes of Veeranahosahalli on Friday night. Forest department personnel had driven them back into the forests. However, one of them, a tuskerhad not returned. It was returning to the forest on Saturday, during the wee hours, from Veeranahosahalli village, when it tried to cross over the railway track fence. In its efforts, it got stuck in the middle,” said ACF S R Prasanna Kumar.
Forest department officials said, it was an identified rogue elephant and it would often raid human habitats. It has tried to cross over the fence near the official quarters of the RFO in the forest. It has taken the fence route, even though the gates, leading to the forest, had been kept open, they said.
It has to be recalled that only a couple of weeks ago, on December 4, Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy had announced construction of a 500-km-long railway track fence at Alur and surrounding villages in Hassan district.
He had given the assurance to the people of Balupet and surrounding villages when they held a week-long protest, seeking a permanent solution to the wild jumbo menace.
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