Rajakumari (Idukki): April 29 marks the first anniversary of the controversial translocation of Arikomban, the wild male elephant who raided shops in human settlements at Santhanpara and Chinnakanal areas in the Idukki district of Kerala to feed on rice, from his original habitat.

The elephant is now in the Kothayar forest in the Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu. In fact, Arikomban – who received the name from his preference for rice (in the local language, Malayalam, rice is referred to as ‘ari’ and tusker as ‘komban’) – was translocated twice. The first shifting took place on April 29, 2023, when the tusker was tranquilised by the Kerala Forest Department at Cementpalam at Chinnakanal. He was subsequently moved to the Periyar Tiger Reserve in the state.

However, four days later, Arikomban crossed the state border into neighbouring Tamil Nadu and ventured into Cumbum, a thickly populated town adjacent to the forest. In the town, he attacked a passerby and the man later succumbed to injuries in a hospital.

When a human life was lost, the Tamil Forest Department launched an operation to capture and translocate Arikomban again. He was tranquilised and, with the help of ‘kumki’ (tamed elephants), shifted to Kothayar forest. Tamil Nadu forest officials said that Arikomban has now joined a herd of female elephants.

No change in situation
Even after one year since Arikomban was shifted from the place, threats from other rogue elephants persist in the Chinnakanal area. While raids on shops have ceased, wild elephants have attacked humans, causing two deaths in the last four months alone. The victims were Parimalam (44), a woman belonging to Panniyar and Vellakkallil Soundarrajan (68), a man from Chinnakanal.

Local people point out that two tuskers who are referred to as Chackakomban (a tusker who is fond of ‘chacka’ – jackfruit) and Murivalan (an elephant with a broken tail) are now spreading terror in the area. There are 19 elephants in the region, including these solitary tuskers, said Kerala Forest Department officials. At the same time, residents of the area pointed out that this herd had four juvenile tuskers, which could pose a threat to humans when they become adults.

Waiting for experts’ report
The Kerala High Court had constituted a panel of experts in March 2023, following a plea submitted by environmental activists against shifting Arikomban from his natural habitat. The panel was tasked with making recommendations to ease human-wildlife conflict. However, the committee is yet to submit its report even after a year.

At the same time, the state government announced another panel a few days ago for suggesting measures to implement long and short-term projects to prevent man-animal strife in areas bordering the forest.