VIZIANAGARAM: ‘Operation Gaja’ undertaken by the forest officials to trace and rescue a missing tusker with the help of two trained elephants in the forest area at Ravivalasa near Salur agency in Vizianagaram district was a huge success here Tuesday. The operation was launched to save the jumbo, who was found missing following its partner’s electrocution last week in the agency.
‘Operation Gaja’ deployed a large number of forest staff from Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam districts to Janauaryvalasa forest to trap the tusker. The authorities brought two trained elephants, Jaya and Vijaya, from Chittoor district and set them in the forest area of Janauaryvalasa Monday evening. The trained elephants, according to instructions of the trainer, searched and approached the missing elephant and developed a friendship with it. Sources said that as instructed by the trainer after developing friendship, they remarkably brought the tusker to the camp area Tuesday afternoon, where the authorities trapped it.
Divisional Forest officer, Vizianagaram, IKV Raju said that they have successfully caught the jumbo with the help of the elephants as well as their staff. The rescued elephant will be sent to Indira Gandhi Zoological Park at Visakhapatnam, he informed.
Last week, the rescued elephant along with his partner wreaked havoc in the agency, where one of it was electrocuted. After the incident, the officials realised that the second elephant was missing and launched a search operation. However when the search failed, the authorities quickly brought in the trained elephants from Chittor.
Sources said that the Vijaya and Jaya are experienced in such operations and have a successful track record of taming wild elephants.