An elephant was rescued by villagers after it fell into a hole full of mudwater in Karnataka, India on January 2.

The villagers had set up this trap to counter the rising number of elephant attacks in the area.

It was discovered that despite repeated appeals, the government has not taken any action, and hence, the villagers resorted to taking matters in their own hands. Also, forest department officials could not protest against the digging of such holes as it was done on private land.

An elephant was rescued after it fell into a hole which was a trap set by villagers in southern India's Karnataka.

The incident happened in Hosakoppalu village, Hassan district on January 2.

Visuals showed the trapped elephant inside the hole. It was trapped inside the hole which was full of mudwater. The pachyderm also seemingly attempted to come out of the trap but failed to do so. A huge group of people had gathered at the spot.

Later, the range officer Shilpa led the rescue team and the elephant was taken out of the hole in a 30-minute operation after it was trapped inside for around four-five hours. Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Mithun and Assistant Commissioner of Revenue Anmol Jain were also present at the spot.

The villagers had set up this trap to counter the rising number of elephant attacks in the area. It was learnt that despite repeated appeals, the government has not taken any action and hence the villagers resorted to taking matters in their own hands. Also, forest department officials could not protest against the digging of such holes as it was done on private land.