A 3-year-old jumbo on Sunday fell into a ditch after being separated from its herd at Borengajuli tea garden in Assam’s Udalguri district.
According to reports, the wild jumbo, which fell in a 5-ft deep ditch on Saturday night, spent the night in the pit.
The elephant was rescued on Sunday morning after persistent efforts by locals and forest department officials.
“The pachyderm was rescued from the pit and it even walked for a while but breathed its last due to lethargy,” said Dibakar Nayak, a nature activist, who was a part of the rescue operation.
Noted wildlife activist Nabajyoti Baruah, while expressing dismay over the incident said, “The Borengajuli tea garden management was requested not to dug up deep ditches to prevent accidental deaths as elephant herds frequent the area but such requests were largely ignored.”
The forest range officer (in-charge), Bornadi Wildlife Sanctuary, Kushal Deka told Northeast Now, “The jumbo was successfully rescued in the morning by locals and forest officials.”
“The mother of the jumbo also chased public following which 12 rounds were fired in the air, however, the jumbo after walking nearly 500 metres died due to lethargy,” Deka said.
“Though the post-mortem report is awaited, it is suspected that the jumbo suffered a heart attack,” he added.