Dasara jumbo Balarama shot at; farmer held, sent to 14-day jail

NT Correspondent

Mysuru: Balarama, the tusker which has carried the golden howda h 14 times during the world-famous Mysuru Dasara Jamboo Savari, has been shot at by a farmer with an illegal weapon near Bheemanakatte Elephant Camp in Periyapatna taluk of Mysuru district.

Veterinarians treated the jumbo for the bullet wound on its stomach, and is said to be recuperating. On the basis of a complaint lodged by Forest department officials, Suresh, the land owner was arrested, produced before court and remanded to 14 days in judicial custody.

According to information reaching here, the incident occurred when 63-year-old Balarama was allegedly grazing in a private field. Angered over this, Suresh shot at Balaram with his unlicensed singlebarrel gun, and the pellets ruptured his stomach.

The farmer is said to have mistaken it for a wild jumbo and opened fire “without knowing it was Balarama”. When the elephant did not return to the camp after the overnight grazing, the Forest department staff went in search of it and found the injured pachyderm.

Upon enquiry, some villagers disclosed that it was Suresh who shot the elephant. Following a written complaint by the department, police arrested Suresh, seized the single-barrel gun along with some cartridges, and produced him before court, which remanded him in judicial custody. A veterinary doctor was summoned to the camp to treat the elephant.

The pellets were removed from Balarama and the wound dressed. The doctor has declared the muchdecorated jumbo out of danger. Police have registered a case and are investigating it further. It may be mentioned here that recently Gopalakrishna, another Dasara elephant, died in a fierce fight with a wild elephant in Nagarhole National Park.