Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 27 (IANS): A Kerala youth while working in his land near the picturesque Munnar tourist destination suddenly found himself in the middle of a herd of wild elephants.

Seeing the elephants of various sizes heading towards him, the youth, named Saji, tried to run away, but soon felt that he could not run further. The only option for him was the tall Eucalyptus tree. And within minutes, he climbed up and reached the top.

The elephants, also unwilling to let their prey away, surrounded the tree where Saji was perched.

Sensing that his time was up, Saji started shouting for help with all his energy.

Soon his cries for help were heard and the locals then got together. After around 90 minutes they managed to drive away the wild elephants. No sooner had the herd left, Saji came down, thanking the locals and his stars.

"I was working on my land and was startled to see elephants coming towards me. I ran and then decided to climb the tree. I shouted for help with all the energy that I had in me. I was lucky as my crises attracted the attention of a passerby who responded," said Saji.

Meanwhile, the locals at Chinnakanal demanded surveillance from the forest department against the wild elephant menace.