An injured wild elephant, found with a severe infected wound on its forehead, was tranquillised near Athirappilly in Thrissur district of Kerala on Friday (January 24, 2025) morning by a specialised veterinary team.

Despite the animal’s attempts to charge at them, the team, led by Chief Veterinary Officer Arun Zacharia, successfully sedated the elephant. The team had been on a mission to tranquilise it to treat the animal, which was struggling to feed itself due to the infection.

The operation to sedate and treat the elephant had been on for three days. Though the elephant was initially spotted near the Chalakudy river on Wednesday, attempts to tranquillise it failed as it vanished into the forests, complicating the mission.

On Friday morning, the elephant was sighted again, this time with a herd of three other pachyderms. The team took advantage of the moment when the elephant was separated from the group and successfully sedated it. Initially, the animal resisted violently, but it was eventually subdued.

The injured elephant was first found in the Ezhattumukham forest station area at Athirappilly.

It is believed the wound was caused by a violent clash with another elephant.