Bear outsmarts rescuers after falling into well in Tamil Nadu village

TIRUNELVELI: A sloth

bear

that fell into a

well

at Singikulam in Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu on Monday outsmarted forest department personnel who tried to rescue it.

The animal that strayed out of the forest could have fallen into the well around 5am, villagers said. According to them, the animal suffered wounds.

On being alerted, forest department personnel reached the spot with tranquilizer guns, nets and a metal cage.

Department personnel lowered the cage tied to ropes with its shutter open. They expected the animal in distress would enter cage. However, in an unexpected turn of events, the animal climbed the cage by holding on to the metal side, jumped on top of the cage and then reached the ground above.

Frightened by its move, forest department personnel and the public ran in all directions. The bear was given a tranquilizer shot as it was speeding away.

“It is amidst bushes 300 meter away from the well. We are trying to capture the animal. We have surrounded the place and are gauging the effect of the tranquilizer,” deputy director of Kalakkad sub-division of Kalakkad Mundanthurai Tiger Reserve M Elango told TOI.

They captured the bear around 1.30pm. It will be observed for sometime and released into the wild.