WATCH: Wild elephant falls into well inside private rubber plantation in Kerala

A wild elephant that fell into a water-filled pit in Kottappady region of Ernakulam district in Kerala on Friday (Apr 12) morning was rescued by the police and the Wildlife Department in the evening on the same day.

Section 144 Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) was announced in the area for 24 hours to tranquilise and rescue the elephant.

The Chief Wildlife Warden, as per ANI reports, had permitted to tranquilise the elephant whenever the weather was suitable.

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However, the police rescued the animal without using the tranquiliser.

#WATCH | Wild elephant rescued from the water-filled pit in Kottappady of Ernakulam district in Kerala pic.twitter.com/i0FWRvLiSq — ANI (@ANI) April 12, 2024

Police earlier released a statement saying that they received information about the incident early in the morning.

#WATCH | Kerala: A wild elephant fell into a water-filled pit in Kottappady of Ernakulam district. Efforts are underway to rescue it.

Section 144 CrPC has been announced in the area of Kotappadi panchayat for 24 hours to tranquilise and rescue the elephant. The Chief Wildlife… pic.twitter.com/gnBardXKV6 — ANI (@ANI) April 12, 2024

Earlier, a police official, sharing updates about the situation said, "All the concerned officials have reached the locality. A decision on how to rescue the elephant and transport it safely to the forest will be taken soon."

The well, where the elephant fell inside, was located inside a private rubber plantation and did not have any side walls.

The police and forest officials had cordoned off the area.

Meanwhile, the locals took to the streets and staged demonstrations demanding authorities to come up with a permanent solution after multiple incidents of wild animal incursion into the human habitat were reported in the area.

(With inputs from agencies)