Minutes before the incident, the youth reportedly boasted to his friends about emulating a Kannada film hero w... Read More

KOLAR: A 24-year-old inebriated youth who tried to get close to an elephant to kiss it on Wednesday has landed in hospital. The incident occurred near Malur, 50km from Bengaluru, when officials from the forest and police departments were trying to drive a herd of six elephants back into the forests on Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border.

Forest officials have been working hard for the last one week to drive back the herd which damaged a mango grove, plantain farms and cucumber fields in and around DN Doddi village . Residents too have been tracking and joining the forest department’s operations, despite being told not to do so.

On Wednesday, the elephants were seen moving towards Kateri and Araleri villages. “A lot of people had gathered outside DN Doddi village to take photos of the elephants and some even tried to take selfies. But the animals were getting restless seeing the crowd. At one point, they charged towards the onlookers, who ran helter-skelter,” forest department sources said, adding “We later found Raju bleeding in the face. He was not in a position to speak and we had to shift him to hospital quickly. He must have rammed an eucalyptus tree while fleeing the spot.”

However, the buzz among villagers was about Raju trying to move closer to the elephants. Minutes before the incident, he reportedly boasted to his friends about emulating a Kannada film hero who had kissed an elephant on silver screen.

Meanwhile, KP Dhanalakshmi, RFO Malur said that though they have been trying to drive the animals back into the forests, the jumbos have been returning. She said authorities have taken steps to create awareness among villagers against going near the animals or trying to disturb them. She said additional personnel from neighbouring taluks would be pressed into service to prevent any untoward incidents.



In Video: Bengaluru: Drunk youth tried to kiss Jumbo, ends up in hospital