Arikomban

Arikomban (born ) is a wild male Indian elephant from Kerala, India. The elephant is known for his raids on local shops for rice and causing damage in Chinnakanal area of Munnar and is rumoured to have killed ten people and injured many. The name Arikomban is a combination of the Malayalam words ''ari'', meaning rice, and ''komban'', meaning tusker.

Arikomban is estimated to be born in the late 1980s. He was initially known as ''Chinnakomban''. The elephant started violence in the region in the early 2010s. Arikomban's practice involves breaking into ration shops, home kitchens and grocery stores and eating rice. A native's ration shop in Panniyar Estate was vandalized nine times in a year by Arikomban. Since 2005, more than 75 buildings have been destroyed by the elephant. On 29 April 2023, the Kerala wildlife department tranquillised and captured Arikomban from Chinnakanal and released into the Periyar National Park.

History

In 2017, Kerala Forest Department tried unsuccessfully to capture Arikomban. One of the most experienced " Kumkis" (trained elephant) handlers in India, Anamalai Kaleem, led the operation, tracked the elephant, and hit it with tranquilliser shots, but it escaped into the wilderness.

In March 2023 a proposal to capture Arikomban by the Kerala government was initially controversial. Animal rights activists opposed the Kerala Forest Department's decision to capture and tame Kumuki elephants at the Kodanad Elephant Center in Ernakulam district. They petitioned the Kerala High Court, which prevented the department from going ahead. The court appointed an expert committee to investigate the matter, which recommended moving the elephant to the Parambikulam Tiger Reserve, a wilderness region with no possibility of human–elephant conflict. Protests quickly broke out in the Parambikulam neighbourhood as locals vehemently opposed the decision. The Kerala government was then instructed by the High Court to release Arikomban in a location chosen by the government while concealing the location. The court then instructed the forest department to follow the elephant, tranquillize it, and then fasten a radio collar around its neck to monitor its activities.

The government sought alternative areas to relocate the elephant. Arun Zachariah, a wildlife veterinarian, was in charge of the mission to capture Arikomban, assisted by 150 people from the police, health, and motor vehicles departments as well as the rescue services. In a two-day operation, the elephant was successfully tranquillized and herded into a truck using four kumki elephants and sent to the Periyar Tiger Reserve on 29 April 2023.

In popular culture

A Malayalam feature film depicting the life of Arikomban is under development.

See also

* List of individual elephants
* Elephants in Kerala culture
* Padayappa

References

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Elephants in Indian culture
Elephants in Kerala
Individual elephants in India
1980s animal births
Individual wild animals