Shanthanpara:A migrant worker from Jharkhand was rescued by forest officials and the Rapid Response Team (RRT) after he found himself surrounded by a herd of nine wild elephants near Kallippara.

The man, identified as 32-year-old Naresh, had been working on a leased farmland owned by a local resident near the KRV First Block at Kallippara when he was suddenly surrounded by the elephants. Terrified, he ran for safety and climbed onto a nearby rock. From there, he managed to call his employer and inform him about the situation. The employer immediately alerted the Forest Office in the Ponmudi section.

Deputy Range Officer P A Johnson informed the RRT team at Chinnakanal and rushed to the spot along with BFOs P R Harikumar and R Rajeev. Around the same time, BFO Vishnu Chandran, who was in charge of the Chinnakanal RRT, along with RRT members C Raghu, M Rajani, V Nataraj, R Manikandan and K Kalimuthu, also reached the location.

The officials managed to drive away the herd of elephants, including a calf, by bursting crackers and raising loud noises. Only after the herd retreated was Naresh safely brought down from the rock. The herd had been causing extensive crop damage in the area over the past few days.