Wild elephant falls into well in Kerala’s Ernakulam, rescued after several hours

Kochi, Jul 7 (PTI) A wild elephant fell into a well in the Malayattoor area of Ernakulam district in the wee hours of Tuesday and was brought out several hours later after rescue efforts were initially obstructed by residents, officials claimed. A senior forest official said the department was informed about the elephant’s fall into the well around 5 am to 6 am, and personnel were immediately sent there to carry out rescue operations. “Residents are obstructing the rescue efforts, raising concerns about repeated instances of human-animal conflict in the area and other related issues,” the official said in the morning. Residents claimed that the elephant had injuries to its trunk and, therefore, could not forage for food on its own, which was why it kept entering residential areas. They told reporters that the elephant could not simply be allowed to return to the forest, as it would come back to the residential area, and demanded that it be tranquilised and taken away for treatment. Subsequently, following interventions by local people’s representatives and assurances that steps would be taken to curb human-animal conflict in the area, the residents allowed the elephant to be rescued, a forest official said. Thereafter, a sloping ramp was created using a JCB to help the elephant climb out. The elephant slowly made its way up the ramp and then ran into the nearby forest. PTI HMP SSK