Kollegal: Two wild elephants created a stir in Kollegal early yesterday as they roamed the streets, leaving residents both astonished and anxious.

The unexpected sighting puzzled residents, especially since any forested areas do not border Kollegal town. The arrival of these gentle giants has sparked curiosity and concern among the townspeople.

CCTV footage revealed the elephants wandering through residential areas after 2 am.  Luckily, the streets were deserted, preventing any attacks. Before entering the town, the elephants had crossed nearby fields but surprisingly refrained from consuming or damaging crops.

Their journey through Kollegal was captured on CCTV as they moved from the fields to Devanga Pete’s Dubatti Veerashetti Street, Nadukal Street and Chowdeshwari Temple Street. At Chowdeshwari Temple Street, the duo temporarily split up, possibly startled by barking dogs, before reuniting and continuing their exploration.

No harm to vehicles

The elephants then proceeded along Marigudi Street, passed a Mosque on Dr. Rajkumar Road and even entered a petrol pump on Dr. Ambedkar Road. After circling the pump, they made their way towards the Town Police Station Road. Despite their prolonged presence, they caused no harm to parked vehicles or property, roaming peacefully through the town.

One vigilant resident, upon spotting the elephants through a window, promptly alerted the Town Police Station staff. The Police informed the Forest Department, which dispatched a team to guide the elephants back to the forest. Using fireworks, the Forest officials successfully redirected the elephants along the Kollegal-Bengaluru Road to their natural habitat.

Foresters revealed that the elephants had strayed from the Sattegala forest. Chief Conservator of Forests (Chamarajanagar Circle), T. Heeralal, confirmed that the wild elephants were successfully driven back to the forests.

K.R. Nagar update

In a separate incident early yesterday morning, two wild elephants were seen in Adaguru village in K.R. Nagar taluk. Unlike Kollegal, these elephants ventured into paddy fields, destroying crops and triggering panic among villagers.

Forest officials rushed to the scene and initiated operations to drive the animals back to the forest.