Tension gripped about a dozen villages in V. Kota mandal here in Andhra Pradesh after a herd of 17 wild elephants strayed into the district from the forests of Karnataka in the early hours of Thursday.
By evening, the herd was seen roaming close to the fields at Kummaramadugu and Dandikuppam hamlets of the mandal.
According to information, the herd made its way to V. Kota after the forest officials tried to force it back into the forests. After reaching Madderi in Kolar district, the herd all of a sudden crossed the Palamaner-Hosur national highway and entered Chittoor district. The farmers are a worried lot as wild elephants usually raid crops after dusk.
On receiving information from the elephant-trackers, the forest officials of Chittoor West division rushed to the spot and deployed additional forces at vulnerable villages to prevent the entry of the wild animals into fields and human habitations.
Safeguarding crops
Farmers of Thota Kanuma, Chinna Syama, Mornapalle, and Raghavapalle villages urged the forest officials to initiate immediate steps to drive the elephants back into the thickets. “V. Kota mandal remained almost free from the menace of wild elephants this year. With good rains, agriculture activity is hectic here. At a time we are waiting for the harvest, the presence of the wild elephants is a nightmare to us,” said a farmer in V. Kota, Srinivas Gowd.
Forest Range Officer (Palamaner) B. Srinivasulu told The Hindu that he along with a 20-member team of elephant trackers were camping at Thotakanuma village to prevent the herd from moving towards Palamaner. “Now, our immediate task is to drive the elephants towards Tamil Nadu, as the possibility of the herd retreating into Karnataka is remote. We are taking care to protect crops,” he said.
