Can't predict Arikomban's movement, tusker may return to Kerala: Saseendran

Kozhikode: According to Kerala forest minister A K Saseendran, nobody can predict the movement of wild tusker Arikomban.

The elephant is being translocated by the Tamil Nadu forest department a month after Kerala forest department released the tusker at the Periyar tiger reserve.

The minister was reacting to the media here on Monday after the Tamil Nadu forest department successfully captured the elephant from a residential area near Theni.

Saseendran noted that the elephant returned to residential areas even after the Kerala forest department translocated the animal deeper into the forest at the Periyar tiger reserve.

“The recent developments proved that the wild elephant will return to residential areas even after transloaction deep into the forest. Kerala and Tamil Nadu should take a decision on Arikomban based on these experiences. Translocation is only a temporary solution. We can't say the tusker won't return to Kerala,” he said.

The Kerala Forest Department had decided to capture the elephant and train it as a kumki elephant after it continued to raid houses and attack people in Idukki's Chinnakanal. But the decision was revoked after the high court stayed the mission to capture the elephant and directed the state government to translocate it deep into the forest.

The minister further noted that the Kerala forest department took the right stance on the issue.

It was on April 29 the Kerala forest department tranquilised the elephant and relocated it to Periyar tiger reserve.

However, the elephant kept traversing the reserve and entered forests in Tamil Nadu within a few days. Tamil Nadu government ordered to tranquilise and capture the elephant after it ran amok in a residential area at Cumbum on May 27.