An elephant at the waterhole
| Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
A herd of thirsty elephants, a water source across a human settlement, worried locals and concerned forest department officials, might sound like the perfect template for human-animal conflict. Forest department officials of the Inchathotty Forest Station under the Munnar Forest Division in Kerala, however, flipped the script and came up with a creative solution to put the locals at ease and provide succour for the thirsty elephants and other wild animals, by digging a a waterhole.
Eighteen officials of the Inchathotty Forest Station near Kothamangalam pooled in ₹12,000 for the tank, which is now being used not only by elephants, but also sambar deer, wild boar, nilgai, smaller animals and even the odd python.
A couple of weeks ago GG Santosh Kumar, deputy range officer at the Inchathotty Forest Station was informed of a herd of elephants waiting near a solar-powered fence at Muniapara (which falls under the Forest Station), attempting to get past it to reach the river Periyar. The work on the 11 kilometre solar-powered fence, is intended to keep elephants from raiding farms and human settlements.
The water hole built by the forest department officials of the Inchathotty Forest Station
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
“It is their source of water, however to do that they cross areas where people live,” Santosh Kumar said. “There was a four-month old calf who would make futile attempts to get past the fence. It looked extremely thirsty. Every time it touched the fence, to get to the river, it would get a jolt of electric current. We thought the herd would move on, as they normally do. But they did not, it was not easy watching the thirsty herd waiting there. We felt bad for them. Also their presence was making locals uneasy,” he says. The area comprises rocky terrain, which makes availability of water scarce. “In peak summer especially, the waterfalls and streams run dry making access to water difficult for these wild animals.”
The locals were worried with good reason, the memory of Eldhose of nearby Urulthanni, who was trampled on by a tusker in December 2024, was still fresh in their minds. When the elephants did not leave even after a couple of days, the officials of the Inchathotty came up with the watering hole plan in mid-February. This way it would also put the residents’ minds at ease.
Though Santosh Kumar mooted the idea, he had the wholehearted support of his colleagues.
Once the spot was identified, a JCB Excavator was used to dig the tank — eight metres long, one metre deep, six metres wide with a capacity to hold 50,000 litres of water. “Once the tank was lined with silpaulin we put in dried leaves and other debris to make it look natural so that the animals would not be suspicious. We had the full support of the locals in the endeavour. Even the staff was thrilled once the pond was ready,” says Santosh Kumar. It is situated around 50 metres from the main road making the weekly refills easy. A tanker lorry is used to fetch water from the nearby Periyar for the purpose.
“We are all excited by how the animals are making use of the waterhole. We intend to maintain it for as long as it is needed,” says Santosh Kumar.
Published – March 07, 2025 02:49 pm IST