66-year-old Mahendra, engaged in protecting timber and tigers, dies in Similipal Tiger Reserve

Baripada (Odisha): A 66-year-old tusker engaged in protecting timber and tigers in the Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR) in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district, has died during treatment, a senior forest department official said on Monday.

On Sunday around 10.30 pm, the elephant, Mahendra, died in the Chahala camp.

The jumbo had stopped eating from Sunday morning and it died of old age-related weakness, STR field director Dr Prakash Chand Gogineni said.

"Mahendra was under the treatment of veterinary doctor Abhilash Acharya. A post-mortem examination will be conducted," Gogineni said.

Mahendra, a trained jumbo, was brought to Similipal in December 2001 from the Rajiv Gandhi National Park in Karnataka, along with two female elephants Bhavani and Shobha.

The jumbo during its deployment in Similipal, had received bullet injuries in a Maoist attack in 2012.

The elephant had also suffered arrow hits by poachers in the forest. It, however, recovered and resumed work, an official said.

Mahendra was also deployed to guard the tigress Sundari. It was brought from Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh to Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary in Angul district in 2019.

The jumbo was later shifted back to Similipal.

Forest officials and local communities on Monday mourned Mahendra’s death and described the tusker as a true “hero” as it was a protector of wildlife in Similipal.

“Mahendra was not just an elephant, but a symbol of strength against poachers and timber smugglers. His bravery will always be remembered,” a forest department official said.