Forest Department staff captured another tusker at Bekkanahalli in Sakleshpur taluk on Monday. This brings the total number of elephants captured in Hassan since November 2013 to six.
The staff fired a tranquiliser dart at the elephant and captured it. The department still has the task of capturing six tuskers and 13 female elephants in the region.
The High Court of Karnataka and the Ministry of Environment and Forests had given approval to capture 25 wild elephants that have been causing damage to life and crops in Alur and Sakleshpur taluks. Ganesh S. Bhat, Deputy Conservator of Forests, told The Hindu that the tusker was aged around 40. He said it was separated from the herd before the tranquiliser dart was fired. “We will shift it to Dubare elephant camp,” he said.
The department has hired around 30 mahouts and kavadis from different elephant camps to be part of the operation.
