Bengaluru: Jumbo caught in slush saved

Bengaluru: Alert forest staff of Hunsur division in Mysuru rescued a two or three year old tusker which was caught in slush and struggling to come out from the dried up Katuvinahalli kere near Hanagodu village.

On Tuesday morning, the young tusker that came out of the forest in search of water, entered the tank only to be caught in the ditch filled with slush. Finding it difficult to come out, the jumbo was crying for help.

Villagers who heard the cries of the tusker, immediately informed the local forest officers.

On receipt of information, the staff, armed with a diesel pumpset, reached the spot and pumped out the muddy water as much as possible. They also brought them with them a tamed elephant which pulled out the young tusker from the slush.

The entire rescue operation lasted for over an hour. Once rescued, the tusker rested for a while, and went back into the wild.

A senior forest officer complimented local villagers for taking the right decision of informing forest personnel who are experienced in conducting such operations. Almost all waterholes within the national park had gone dry due to failure of monsoon in the last three years forcing wild animals to go in search of tanks. "Fortunately, the incident  happened in the morning, otherwise the jumbo would have died unable to come out of the slush".