Udumalaipet: It’s 3.30 pm and the quaint farming village of Kannadiputhur in Udumalaipet, begins to see a change in setting. As hundreds of people slowly march towards the private sugarcane fields, Chinnathambi, the current centre of attraction of the area, wakes up for his regular routine.
Udumalaipet: It’s 3.30 pm and the quaint farming village of Kannadiputhur in Udumalaipet, begins to see a change in setting. As hundreds of people slowly march towards the private sugarcane fields, Chinnathambi, the current centre of attraction of the area, wakes up for his regular routine.
Shaking off the dust from his back, the tusker continues to stand inside the sugarcane field, where he was sleeping so far and starts to munch on the canes. Spending a healthy half an hour in feeding on the sugarcane, Chinnathambi emerges out of his sleeping arena, out into the open.
As hundreds of people watch on, Chinnathambi walks casually on the open field cultivated with onions and makes his move to the second sugarcane field.
From one field to the other, Chinnathambi takes unperturbed steps taking very little notice of the people on the sides and acknowledging the presence of foresters who have been guiding him so far.
For every shout of “Chinnathambi” from the team, he pauses and stares for a while, before moving on towards their direction and continues to walk, showing no signs of his previous wild behaviour.
This has been the concern of many ever since Chinnathambi exited the reserve on the 31st of January. As he walked past towns and villages, Chinnathambi’s wildness had been lost somewhere.
This is evident in his current staying spot as he is least bothered about returning to the forest and is enjoying his stay feasting on sugarcane, coconut, paddy and plantain.
Yet, what amazes many is the strict schedule he follows on any given day to carry out his routine. Starting from his sleeping spot around 3.30 to 4 in the evening and moving on to the plantain grove nearby.
He then plays for a while with an empty sack throwing it here and there and then moves onto the paddy farm nearby to change the main course of his meal.
By the time he had finished his outing, it becomes 5.00 am in the morning and Chinnathambi would slowly move towards his sleeping arena. It is this time that is cited as being apt by the department to dart the animal with tranquiliser as he would be in open ground.
All the while, Chinnathambi is actually a calm and harmless creature. However, his footsteps leave behind enormous damage for the farmers who are playing an eternal waiting game.
Though the department had promised to payback for the loss incurred on the farmers, it is still a heartache for farmers as they helplessly watch Chinnathambi plough their field. More than 50 coconut trees have been pushed over by him so far.
Scenes of angry farmers blasting out at the tusker and forest officials have become common in Kannadiputhur.
Chinnathambi on the other hand, returns to a deep sleep and Unmindful of all these, he still sees this place as his temporary “home", from where he is to be captured.