They said that the elephant may have come in search of food when he had fallen into the 30 foot well.

The wildlife officers and villagers had launched a joint effort of around seven hours to rescue the animal.

The operation took long as the well was deep. However the rescued elephant was released into the wild.

The villagers said that due to the prevailing drought, elephants venture into villages in search of water.

Pics by Madawa Kulasooriya