Wild elephant's 6-month-long Goan vacation ends in rescue mission
A wild elephant named Omkar, just 10 years old, wandered away from his herd in Maharashtra earlier this year and ended up in Goa.
Since September, he's been roaming northern Goa villages and damaging crops, which led forest officials from Maharashtra, Goa, and Karnataka to join forces for a rare rescue mission.
Omkar will be safely tranquilized and moved to Maharashtra
After several failed attempts to guide Omkar home—made trickier by villagers scaring him off with crackers—the team called in trained kumki elephants from Karnataka.
At least 60 forest officials, along with veterinarians and police, are working together to safely tranquilize Omkar and move him without harm.
Villagers have been patient through the whole ordeal
Even though their crops took a hit, local villagers have stayed patient and worked with authorities.
Once rescued, Omkar is most likely to be taken to Maharashtra's Kamlapur elephant camp for training by mahouts—a fresh start after his unexpected adventure.