Wild gaur on the loose in suburbs of Kerala capital tranquilised, Forest officials to translocate animal
The Hindu
Kerala Forest officials tranquilised a wild gaur in Thiruvananthapuram suburbs after it caused concern among residents for two days.
Forest officials on July 25 tranquilised a wild gaur that caused concern among residents in the suburbs of Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram, specifically Pothencode and Andoorkonam grama panchayats, for close to two days.
The presence of the wild animal sparked panic in the region after it entered human habitations from the Palode forest area on July 23 evening. It was first spotted several kilometres away near the Technocity campus (or Technopark Phase IV), the State-developed IT park that houses the Digital University Kerala (DUK) along with several IT firms and other institutions. The animal is suspected to have gone astray from its herd.
The gaur traversed a long distance throughout on July 24 to cross areas, including Mohanapuram and Manikkal, as it entered Pothencode grama panchayat late in the day. While it remained elusive during the late hours, the animal was spotted near a water theme park at Manikkal early on July 25.
Following several hours of surveillance, the wild animal was finally darted twice as it reached a dense plantation at Pirappancode. It made a futile attempt to flee by scaling a compound wall before losing consciousness.
The Forest department has commenced steps to translocate the animal after assessing its health, official sources said.
Forest Minister A.K. Saseendran, who convened a meeting of senior officials, said the route of the animal will be traced to find the “entry point” to prevent further wildlife incursions into human inhabitations.
Besides, early warning and surveillance systems will be enhanced in the vicinity of the Technocity and other IT campuses that adjoin forest areas, he added.