10-hour well hell! Maimed wild tusker pulled from pit after furious village mutiny

KOTHAMANGALAM: A 15-year-old wild tusker that fell into an abandoned well at Koovappara in Kuttampuzha was rescued after a tense ten-hour operation. The elephant had fallen into an unwalled well near the residence of a local, Thattayath Aliyar, situated away from the forest border, at around 2:00 AM yesterday. The animal was eventually pulled out safely by demolishing the side walls of the well.

Although forest department personnel were prepared to launch the rescue operation early in the morning, local residents blocked their efforts. The protestors demanded that the elephant be permanently relocated to another area rather than being released back into the nearby forest. The situation was resolved following a consensus reached during a meeting held in the presence of MLA Shibu Thekkumpuram.

Malayattoor Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) P. Karthik assured the villagers that the elephant would be kept under 24-hour surveillance using drones and forest patrol teams. He also promised that the animal would be tranquilised and captured if it strayed into human habitations again. Additionally, authorities agreed to compensate the homeowner for damages, and the local panchayat undertook the responsibility to install an electric fence in the region. The rescue operation finally commenced around noon after these assurances were made.

According to forest officials, the tip of the tusker's trunk was found severed and hanging, which they confirmed was an old, healed wound. The injury severely restricts the elephant's ability to forage for food and drink water. Officials stated that this physical limitation is likely the reason the elephant frequently ventures into residential areas in search of easy sustenance.