An experience for ages for women stranded deep inside forest

Three women lost their way and got stranded deep inside the forest at Attikalam. The women, who spent the night there, say they could sense the presence of elephants around them all night

The experience of having spent an entire sleepless night atop an elevated rock while listening to the mayhem being created by elephants in the immediate vicinity would be something that the three women who lost their way in the dense forest of Attikalam in Anakkayam division of Kuttampuzha panchayat may have to recount countless times for the rest of their lives.

On Thursday afternoon, Parukutty, 64, Darly, 56, and Maya, 46, had gone in search of Maya’s cow, which, they thought, had lost its way. But instead of the cow, it was they who lost the way and got stranded deep inside the forest.

“It was so dark that I had to search with my hands to find the other two sitting right next me. We were able to sense the presence of elephants around the rock on which we sat. The only reassuring fact was that we had space to move to safety even if an elephant found us,” says Parukutty, who was the leader of sorts among the three and the one most familiar with the forest.

“At one point, we landed in front of a herd of elephants. But fortunately, we could hide behind a tree. We climbed on to the rock to avoid a similar situation and spent the entire night praying, ” says Darly.

Maya says that they could hear the elephants stepping on fallen tree branches and could feel their presence throughout the time they spent in the forest. “We realised that even if we find our way and start for our homes, we would not make it before nightfall and would compromise our safety.That’s why we decided to stay at a place safe from the elephants,” she says.

200m radius

A Forest department official who was part of a search squad that eventually tracked them on Friday morning saysthe team had been in a 200m radius of the rock on which the women sat since the previous night. “We have been calling out their names and even put up a fire for them to spot us. In between, we burst a few firecrackers as well to scare away the elephants,” he adds.

Maya says that they could hear the squad and even the bursting of crackers but chose to remain silent. “Hunters often enter the forest. So, we did not want to take any chance,” she says.

K.K. Benoy, Kothamangalam fire station officer in-charge, says that bursting of crackers seem to have further infuriated the elephants. One of the search squads also had to stay put in the forest overnight in fear of the elephants, he adds.

R. Sanjeev Kumar, forest range officer, Kuttampuzha, says that the women, despite being familiar with the forest, lost their way because the forest has changed in character from what they have known previously. Forest is not like what we see from outside. Inside, it all looks the same. Also, the area is known for the presence of elephants, he adds.

Published - November 29, 2024 07:50 pm IST