Stranded 4-ton whale calf pushed back into sea after 40 hours in Ratnagiri district

A 35-foot-long whale calf stranded on the coast of Ganpatipule in Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra was on Wednesday pushed back into the sea after 40 hours of efforts, much to the delight of visitors and locals at the tourist spot in what officials said was a rare rescue operation.

The whale calf, weighing nearly 4 tons, reached the coast on Monday but got stuck in the sand near the beach as there was a low tide.

Travellers and locals who spotted the giant marine mammal struggling in shallow waters alerted the authorities, including the Ratnagiri police and Coast Guard, resulting in a spirited rescue operation.

Initial attempts by the fire brigade, police and local residents to push back the whale calf deep into the sea did not succeed, triggering concerns about its safety and survival, said an official.

Moving quickly on their feet, the rescuers began pouring seawater to keep the calf hydrated and covered it with cotton to create the required environment to save it, he said.

A team of veterinary doctors also reached the spot and administered fluid to the whale calf to keep it alive.

An effort was made to push the sea animal by tying it with a belt and dragging it, but it caused injuries near its tail, prompting authorities to abort the method. Meanwhile, marine experts were also roped in to monitor the whale calf's health, he said.

On Tuesday night, a tugboat was brought and the whale was placed on a net under a new rescue plan. During high tide, officials and locals again started pushing the calf into the water. They were inspired to work harder seeing the calf itself making attempts to slide towards deeper water, the official said.

After working relentlessly for several hours, the whale calf was dragged 7 to 8 nautical miles into the sea by the tugboat in the early hours of Wednesday, the official said.

Once back in its natural habitat, the whale calf broke the net and started swimming on its own. It then swam deeper and vanished in the sea, said Dhanajay Kulkarni, superintendent of police, Ratnagiri district.

"It was an important task to save the marine life. All stakeholders, including the district administration, Coast Guard, a private company, local villagers, and marine experts, were involved in the operation alongside the police to rescue the whale,'' he said.

Typically, mammals like this calf face survival challenges after being stranded on the shore for more than 35-40 hours, but this calf defied the odds, he said. ''All were very happy as they successfully guided it back into the sea, knowing that it can now resume its natural life,'' he added.

It was rarest of the rare rescue operation involving a whale calf on the Indian coast, said Deputy Forest Officer Girija Desai.

In an attempt to push the whale back into the sea, district administration, police and forest department personnel also tried to airlift it, but the idea was abandoned given the marine mammal's weight, she said.

As per latest information, the whale calf is floating in the sea and likely to return on the Ganpatipule coast again due to low tide, said Desai.

As a precautionary measure, the forest department has called a team of wildlife veterinary specialists to Ratnagiri, around 340km from Mumbai, she said.

Forest department, police and district administration personnel have been deployed at the coast and they are monitoring the situation, she said.

If the whale calf reaches the coast again, the team of veterinary experts will examine it and decide the further course of action, said Desai.