Third elephant calf electrocuted

Government proposes to relocate all the wild elephants

It is said it might have died of electrocution. With this, three elephants have  died in the last two days. The dead calf was around six months.

Following the calves’ deaths, a herd of elephants is moving in the surrounding areas. The officials of the forest department have warned the people to be careful while moving on
Alur-Magge Road as the herd was sighted there.

The elephant deaths have shocked the villagers as well as animal lovers. On Friday morning, the forest staff led by Deputy Conservator of Forests Ambadi Madhav managed to venture near the carcasses of two elephant calves, as the mother elephant had moved out of their vicinity.

Amid fear of being attacked by the herd, the veterinarians conducted the post mortem on the spot and confirmed the deaths were due to electrocution.

The forest department has lodged a complaint in this regard.

Returns

After spending the whole day near the carcasses, the mother elephant returned to the forests in the early hours of Friday. It did not allow anyone to near the carcasses and guarded them throughout the night.

The sight of mother elephant nudging the dead calves as if asking them to wake up was heart-rending. Understanding it, the forest officials called off their operation on Thursday.

After the postmortem, the bodies were cremated near the fields.

Madhav told mediapersons that prima facie evidences showed the calves had died from electrocution. Cases would be registered against the owners in whose land the calves were found dead. If the Union government gives permission, an elephant sanctuary would be developed in the district, or all the wild elephants would be relocated.

Spotted

In the meantime, two wild elephants were found near Dadamahalli Gudde near Halagur in Maddur taluk of Mandya district, after straying from the Muttathi forests. The efforts made by the forest officials to drive them back to the forests, failed.

On receipt of information, hundreds of villagers gathered at the spot preventing the forest officials from carrying out the operation. The officials say the jumbos have come to Dadamahalli Gudda from Muttathi forests via Rottikatte, Shimsha, Dhanagur and Banasamudra and also crossed National Highway 207.

On the way, the elephants damaged ragi crop. As the harvesting is over in the villages situated on the fringes of forests, the elephants strayed out of the forests in search of food.

Forest officer D Devaraj said steps were being taken to drive back the jumbos to Muttathi or Basavanabetti forests.