A troubled and helpless wild elephant which had fallen into a deep pit at night in an Odisha village was rescued by the Forest Department officials and staff.

The Bangiriposhi forest department rescued the sub-adult elephant in Tembatola village which falls in their range. The forest personnel arranged for a JCB earth excavator to carry out the rescue operation by digging out a path to allow the elephant to come out, according to an ANI report.

About 10 elephants entered Tembatola village which is situated in Mayurbhanj district as they were crossing and going to the forest. The moment the villagers saw the herd, they panicked and started running and shouting. This in turn, made the elephants fractious and they ran to exit the village as fast as possible. It was in this melee that an elephant fell into the pit.

Anoomitra Acharya talking to ANI said: “An elephant was rescued from a pit near Tembatola village in Mayurbhanj, late Saturday. A group of elephants created a panic among the villagers who started running after seeing the elephants, during which, one of the elephants fell into the pit.”

On being informed immediately about this incident the Bangiriposhi Forest Department officials moved quickly and started the rescue operation. Using the JCB, they managed to bring the elephant out and directed the creature towards the forest to its freedom.

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Such incidents are frequent in the area. In April this year a baby elephant fell in a well which was 15 feet deep and the authorities used heavy machinery to dig out a way for the calf to come out safely.

The reason why such incidents take place is because Mayurbhanj Elephant Reserve is located in the Mayurbhanj district. In the reserve three protected areas come, and these are Hadagarh Wildlife Sanctuary, Kuldiha Wildlife Sanctuary, and Similipal Tiger Reserve.