Captive elephant dies at Kali Tiger Reserve; activists accuse Forest Department of negligence

Forest Department officials, however, say the four-year-old elephant died of multiple issues, including liver dysfunction; postmortem report awaited

Hubballi: A four-year-old captive-bred female elephant died at the Pansoli range of the Kali Tiger Reserve in Uttara Kannada on Thursday.

While wildlife activists claim that the elephant, named Gauri, died owing to the negligence of the Forest Department, officials said it died of multiple issues, including liver dysfunction. A postmortem report, which is expected in a week, will give a clear picture of the reason for the elephant‘s death.

A source in the department told DH that the elephant was not keeping well for one month. “While the elephant was suffering from a high fever, it was tied to a tree in the open for three rainy days. This could have resulted in sudden deterioration in its health," said the sources.

Though medical intervention from experts was provided, activists said that the elephant was not looked after by trained mahouts, and the food provided to it was not as per the doctors' recommendation.

“The elephant had stopped eating for the last month. We were providing medicine through IV and alternative methods. But it didn't recover and died on Thursday morning,” said Pansoli RFO Kiran Kumar.

Preliminary tests indicate that the elephant died due to liver dysfunction, he said and ruled out that the elephant was suffering from foot and mouth disease.