Two female elephants electrocuted near Bagdogra (India)

Author(s)

The Echo of India

Date Published

A female elephant calf and its mother were electrocuted this morning at Kiran Chandra Tea Garden near Bagdogra. The incident occurred when a herd of wild elephants was crossing the garden heading towards the forest. The calf suddenly slipped and got electrocuted as it came in contact with an electrified pole. Seeing the calf’s plight, the mother rushed to rescue her, but she too got hit by the electric shock and died on the spot.

Forest department personnel arrived at the spot after locals informed them about the incident. P D Bhutia, Bagdogra Forest ranger, said a herd of about 50 elephants were roaming in the area since the last couple of days and they were monitoring the animals’ movement. He said preliminary investigation suggests that the calf may have slipped as the ground was wet due to rainfall and came in contact with the pole.

Amit Lakra, a resident of Kiran Chandra Tea Garden, said the two elephants were found lying dead in the field and they informed the forest department. The tea garden was closed for the day after the incident. The forest department is preparing for the postmortem and officials are investigating the matter in detail.