H.A.N.U.M.A.N team rescues spotted deer from downstream waters of Somasila dam

A spotted deer stranded in the downstream waters of Somasila dam in Nellore district was rescued by a team of the Project H.A.N.U.M.A.N (Healing and Nurturing Units for Monitoring, Aid and Nursing of Wildlife) on Monday. The animal could be saved due to coordinated efforts by the H.A.N.U.M.A.N team, Forest Department staff, local police personnel and members of the fishing community, Deputy Chief Minister and Minister for Environment and Forest K. Pawan Kalyan said in a social media post.

He stated that as access to the distressed animal proved difficult, the rescue team mobilised a boat and carefully navigated the waters to reach it and brought it to safety. The deer was in stable condition and it was subsequently released into Udayagiri–Veligonda reserve forest.

The successful rescue reflected the commitment of the Andhra Pradesh Forest Department to wildlife conservation and rapid response to save the animals in distress. Every rescue is a reminder that protecting wildlife is a shared responsibility, Mr. Kalyan noted.

It may be recalled that the Project H.A.N.U.M.A.N was launched in November 2025 as a technology-driven and community-based conflict management system to address the challenges of the growing human-wildlife conflicts due to habitat fragmentation caused by a surge in human population, expansion of agriculture, among others, which resulted in loss of human lives, livestock, crops, and occasional retaliatory killings of wildlife.