Rogue elephant captured near Coimbatore, translocated

: A wild elephant, which has been troubling people and destroying crops in seven villages in and around Periya Thadagam on the outskirts of the city for the last seven months, was captured Friday, forest officials said.

Based on a complaint from the villagers, particularly farmers, four tamed elephants (kumkis) were used to capture the rogue elephant, the officials said.

The elephant, nicknamed Chinnathambi by some villagers, along with another named Vinayakar, has been a menace, they said.

In an operation a month ago, Vinayakar was caught, radio-collared and released in Mudumalai forest, while Chinnathambi was elusive and continued to roam around human habitats until now.

This morning, Chinnathambi was administered four darts of sedatives and prodded by two of the kumkis onto a lorry, the officials said