India | Tranquillised, translocated twice in 37 days: Sad plight of wild tusker ‘Arikomban’

Thirty-seven days after he was first tranquillised, hauled onto a truck and translocated from his natural habitat in Kerala, 35-year-old wild tusker ‘Arikomban’ (rice-eating tusker in Malayalam) is now undergoing the same ordeal againin the adjoining state Tamil Nadu. This shows the irony of the situation, where human settlements in forests and forest fringe areas are on the rise, but in the name of “Conservation and Protection” wild animals are being translocated from their rightful home.

“Arikomban the wild tusker was safely tranquillised early hours today in Cumbum East Range by a team of Forest Veterinary Surgeons and Forest Department Officials. The elephant is being translocated to a suitable habitat where the Tamil Nadu Forest department will continue to monitor him,” Supriya Sahu, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary Environment Climate Change and Forests, Government of Tamil Nadu, had tweeted.

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How the wild tusker became 'Arikomban'

The wild tusker's only innocent mistake is that he had developed a fondness for rice and began to raid ration shops and settlements to gorge on some carbs. While there are no recorded instances of violent actions by the tusker, it was claimed by the Kerala Forest Department that the tuskerkilled seven people in recent monthsnear his original habitat in Idukki.

There was also pressure from local residents to relocate the elephant. Based on this, it was proposed that the Kerala Forest Department would capture and turn 'Arikomban'(as he was popularly known among locals in Idukki) into a semi-wild, trained elephant (a cruel process meant to break the elephant's natural ways and make him a captive).

Following staunch opposition from activists and others who stated that the elephant was harmless and had not killed any humans, the Kerala High Court declared that the tusker would be translocated. Amid tight security, in the last week of April, the tusker was tranquilised, radio-collared and then translocated from Idukki to the Periyar Tiger Reserve(a drive of nearly 100 kms). While both locations are in Kerala, the Periyar Tiger Reserve is situated close to the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border.

Crossing over from Kerala to Tamil Nadu

Arikomban was released in the Periyar Tiger Reserve region on April 29th and by the first week of May, he had crossed over into the Megamalai range in Tamil Nadu's Theni district. Known to walk dozens of kilometres every day, wild elephants move across regions in search of food and water. Thanks to a radio collar around his neck, forest department officials from both Tamil Nadu and Kerala have been able to monitor the elephant's location in real time. In Tamil Nadu, Kerala's 'Arikomban'got an equivalent Tamil name "Arisi Komban"and he began to make forays into human settlements in his new habitat as well.

Earlier, forest officials from Theni in Tamil Nadu told WION that the radio collar placed on the elephant's neck is operational and the movement of the animal is being tracked both by radio telemetry and GPS.

Forest department teams have also advised those staying in the region to not venture out unnecessarily and particularly have been advised against venturing out late in the evenings. Forest department personnel are monitoring the elephant's movement round-the-clock and alerting those in the region, the official had said.

As the elephant started frequenting towns in Cumbum, the Tamil Nadu forest department decided to capture him again and relocate him deeper into the forests, into an undisclosed location on Monday.

Thereby, the entire process of tracking, tranquillisation, using trained 'kumki'elephants to haul the semi-conscious tusker onto the modified truck and then ferrying him away for release deep in the forest - all had to be carried out once again. While many see such translocations as a heroic effort, it must be remembered that translocations can have an adverse impact on the elephant's health and well-being.

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