Protest in Kerala's Idukki over capture of rice eating tusker Arikomban

Protests broke out in several parts of this high range district on Thursday with locals taking to the roads and blocking traffic, aggrieved over the Kerala High Court's decision not to permit capture of 'Arikomban', a wild tusker, for the time being.

The High Court had on Wednesday constituted a five-member expert committee to take a decision on what action should be taken with regard to Arikomban, so named as it raids ration shops and houses for rice.

The panel has to communicate its decision to the court by April 5, till when capture of the elephant has been prohibited.

The court only permitted tranquilising and radio collaring of the tusker if it forayed into inhabited areas despite the best efforts of the forest and wildlife personnel to deter it from doing so.

Protesting against the court's decision, people of several panchayats of the district came out onto the roads and blocked traffic in some areas, according to TV visuals.

The protesting public, including women and childr