A farmer in the Kadambur Hills who erected a live-wire fence to protect his crops, against which a male elephant aged between 12 and 15 years came into contact and died on Thursday, was arrested by the Forest Department on Friday.
The carcass of the male elephant was found on the farmland of B. Puttusamy, 42, at Kadaganalli village, located about 150 metres from the boundary of the Guthiyalathur Reserve Forest. The Deputy Director of the Sathyamangalam Forest Division was immediately informed and, based on his directions, a veterinary team reached the spot.
A postmortem was later conducted on the carcass in the presence of officials from the Tamil Nadu Forest and Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corporation, Vanam Foundation, the Kadaganalli Village Forest Committee and staff of the Kadambur Forest Range. The procedure was carried out in accordance with the Elephant Death Audit Framework guidelines and the High Court’s directives.
The examination revealed that the elephant had died after coming into direct contact with high-voltage electricity from a wire fence set up around the maize field by the farmer using an illegal power connection.
Subsequently, a special team was formed and Puttusamy was nabbed in Germalam. He was taken to the forest range office where an inquiry was conducted, during which he reportedly confessed to the offence. A wildlife offence case was registered and he was arrested.
