Wayanad: A curfew has been imposed in 10 divisions of Sulthan Bathery municipality after a wild elephant strayed into Bathery town here in the wee hours of Friday. A pedestrian had a narrow escape from its attack.
The curfew was imposed by Manathavady sub division magistrate in Vengoor North, Vengoor South, Armad, Kottakunnu, Kattayad, Bathery, Cheenapullu, Pazhupathoor and Kettavattamoola divisions following this.
The curfew will continue till the elephant scare is over. The sub division magistrate has advised the public to exercise caution during night and day.
Meanwhile, another wild elephant that entered Kalloor village on Wednesday night destroyed 400 banana plants on the farm of director Sarathchandran Wayanad.
The Bathery town witnessed the elephant raid in the wee hours of Friday. The wild animal entered the town around 2.30am from outlying farms.
The tusker, which was running through the main road, charged towards Bathery native Thambi who was standing on the footpath. It soon knocked down Thambi with its trunk. The elephant tried to trample Thambi who was lying on the ground, but could not do so as the railing of the footpath blocked its movement.
Thambi, who suffered minor injuries, has been admitted to the Bathery taluk hospital.
The wild elephant also ran after a KSRTC bus. For almost one hour, it lumbered amid the shops, hotels and also in front of the municipal office.
'The wild elephant is currently in the Mullankunnu area along the forest fringes. The public should remain cautious,' the forest department alerted.
The local residents say that this is the killer elephant that was captured by the Forest Department from Tamil Nadu and released into the forest.
The giant had been in the farms near the town since Thursday afternoon. The forest personnel had earlier reckoned that the elephant went into the forest by evening.
Incidents of wild elephants and tigers venturing into human habitat areas have been on the rise in Wayanad for sometime now. The footage of a tiger jumping over the wall of a house situated in the centre of the town had also surfaced recently.