department's elephant squad - attached to Periyar Tiger Reserve (PTR)
where Sabarimala hill shrine is located - are constantly on their toes.
Reason: Herds of elephants are camping close to the waste dump at
Nilackal, the new base camp for pilgrims before they proceed to Pamba
for their holy trek.
Officials said that wild elephants were particularly attracted to the tonnes
of spoiled molasses dumped in a pit here. This has now fermented after
rain water entered the pit, giving the elephants a steady source of 'heady
concoction, akin to wash'.
The molasses came from the warehouse of Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB), which was damaged by floods in Pamba in
August. Elephants had raided the warehouse in search of molasses after the floods.
"Every night, we have herds coming to drink this because the pit was not properly covered. Elephants step into it, make an
impression with their legs and have a fill when the liquid oozes in. They seem to have acquired a taste for it," said Abdul
Latheef, a forest veterinary doctor attached to PTR elephant squad.
Officials fear this might create safety issues for pilgrims as the dumping spot - situated a few hundred metres away from the
helipad at Nilackal - is located close to the bus station and temporary police barracks.
"Some elephants seem to have behavioural problems due to regular consumption of the liquor-like substance and are not
easily scared by our tactics. There is a possibility of the herds venturing into base camp area," the official said.
Open dumping of food waste like pineapple peels and flowers at the site is also luring the elephants.
Unscientific management of solid waste and sewage is a major issue at Pamba and Nilackal, green activists said. "For sewage,
they have built a tank, next to a forest region, which overflows and reaches Pamba through a stream called Kakkattaaru," said N
K Sukumaran Nair of Pamba Samrakshana Samiti.
Additional district magistrate P T Abraham, who coordinates waste management and sanitation, said he was not aware of such
an issue. "We are grading bio-degradable and non-biodegradable waste and are dumping only organic waste like flowers and
food. This is new to me," he said.
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