Incidents of wild elephants in Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR) intercepting sugarcane-laden lorries and feeding on the dumped sugarcane on the Dindigul – Mysuru National Highway 948 are on the rise in the past one year, triggering panic among motorists.
On Wednesday morning, three elephants with a calf were waiting on the road for the lorries to arrive near Karapallam forest check-post at Hasanur. This resulted in vehicles lining up on both the sides disrupting vehicle movement between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
An elephant pushed a car and damaged it. Further damage was averted as the car driver applied reverse gear. Many incidents, including a lorry driver and his assistant climbing up a tree after wild elephants started dragging sugarcane from the lorry near the check-post, were reported in the past one year.
The ghat road with 27 hairpin bends on the highway passes through the STR and lorries carrying sugarcane from Talavadi and Chamarajanagar in Karnataka use the road to reach a sugar mill at Appakudal in Bhavani taluk. Since breakdown and accidents involving heavy vehicles with excess loads were frequent on the ghat road, height restriction bars were installed at the forest check-posts at Bannari and Karapallam.
Vehicles with over 4.2 metre height cannot use the road and lorry drivers dump the excess sugarcane along the national highways near the check-posts. Also, excess load from the vehicles falls while crossing the bars and sugarcane gets dumped along the road near the check-posts.
“Initially, wild elephants started consuming sugarcanes that were dumped on the road. But, now they have started intercepting sugarcane-laden lorries”, said S. Manickam, a farmer at Talavadi. Since elephants wait on the road, movement of vehicles was frequently disrupted between the two States.
Devendra Kumar Meena, District Forest Officer, Hasanur Division and Deputy Field Director, STR, told The Hindu that most of the incidents were reported between 5 a.m. and 6 a.m. when the lorries pass through the check-post.
“Since elephants started waiting for the lorries, we have requested lorry drivers to postpone their trip after 10 a.m. so that elephants wait for an hour and leave the place,” he said. The DFO also added that forest staff and anti-poaching watchers have been deputed near the check-post to drive elephants, if they disrupt vehicle movement.