Forest Department officials captured one more tusker after sedating it with tranquilizer dart at Nidigere forest near Hettur in Sakleshpur taluk of Hassan on Sunday.
The staff, with the help of tamed elephants, captured the tusker, which the local people identified as Seege, aged about 25 to 30 years. The animal is said to be responsible for the death of two people in recent months.
The department had launched the operation to capture the elephant on Saturday. Watchers and guards had tracked its location. However, the operation did not succeed as it was difficult to sedate the animal in the thick forest. The department continued the operation on Sunday. The veterinarians fired the tranquilizer dart around 12.30 p.m and within minutes the elephant fell unconscious.
Tamed and trained elephants Abhimanyu, Harsha, Prakash, Karnataka Bhima, Mahendra, Dhananjaya and Ashwathama were involved in the operation.
Sourabh Kumar, DCF of Hassan, informed the media that the captured elephant would be shifted to the elephant camp. “With the capture of two elephants, the operation launched on April 18 has come to an end,” the officer said.
