MYSURU: A wild elephant wreaked havoc on the fringes of Nagarahole Tiger Reserve as it went on the prowl in and around the Gurupura Tibetan camp in Hunsur taluk on Monday.
The tusker which had ventured out of the forest was passing by the Gurupura Tibetan camp. Fear-gripped residents made loud noises to drive it away from the region. A resident even threw a flaming torch at the tusker, which enraged the wild elephant and tried to charge at the residents, but no casualties were reported. Later, vehicular movement was brought to a standstill as it stood strong on the middle of the road scaring motorists. It later uprooted an electric pole which disrupted power supply in the region.
Forest officials rushed to the spot and managed to send the tusker back to the woods.The video of the incident has gone viral on social media and has even come under fire from wildlife activists, expressing displeasure against the residents for ill-treating and harassing the elephant.
A wildlife activist has questioned the need to throw a flame torch on the elephant and urged forest officials to book cases against those who harassed the tusker.