Injured tusker to be tranquilised today

Coimbatore: The forest department on Friday issued an order to tranquilise ‘Baahubali’, a wild elephant aged around 35, to treat its mouth injuries.
The department has made all arrangements to tranquilise the animal using dart guns and the operation will start at Mettupalayam forest range of Coimbatore forest division on Saturday. Two kumki elephants, Wasim and Vijay, were brought from the Mudumalai Tiger Reserveto the Mettupalayam forest range to help forest officials during the operation.
A forest veterinary officer said a team is in place and will use a suitable opportunity to tranquilise the animal.
Once Baahubali is tranquilised, veterinarians will examine the animal and nature of its injuries. “Based on their recommendations, the decision to shift the elephant to a kraal (a wooden enclosure) would be taken,” said a senior forest official.
Baahubali used to stray out of the forest all most every day, but it had not harmed anyone. “It was spotted with a bleeding mouth on early Thursday morning. The elephant could have bitten an avuttukkai (a crude bomb) or it could have suffered the injuries during an infight with another tusker,” the official said.
“We have spotted the elephant inside the reserve forest on Friday. The cause of the injuries will be ascertained after we checked the animal,” said Joseph Stalin, range officer of the Mettupalayam forest range.
Forest veterinarians A Sukumar from the Coimbatore forest division, E Vijayaraghavan from the Anamalai Tiger Reserve (ATR) and K Rajesh Kumar from the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) are camping at the Mettupalayam forest range to treat the animal.