Jumbo deaths

TT, Alipurduar, July 7: A tusker has died from suspected electrocution or poisoning and a calf has been killed when its mother accidentally slipped and fell on it in the Buxa Tiger Reserve.

The carcass of the tusker was found in Rangamati-1 compartment under Hamiltangunj range this morning. "There was no external injury on the body. Both the tusks are intact. After post-mortem, we can say what exactly caused its death. The tusker was more than 25 years old," Apurbo Sen, the deputy field director of Buxa, said.

However, a forester who didn't want to be named said the elephant might have been electrocuted or poisoned. "Villagers cultivate crops 100m from the spot where the body was found. To protect the crops, the villagers could have used illegal energised fence to cause harm to wild animals. Apart from that, there are tea gardens in the area where pesticides are used. The animal might have consumed poison also," said the forester.

The new born calf died in Khokla Basti forest today. The calf was with its mother on the bank of a stream. Suddenly, the mother slipped and her front right leg hit the head of the calf. The baby elephant died soon.

The mother, along with other members of its herd, surrounded the calf and did not allow foresters to take the body away for post-mortem. After several hours, with the help of crackers, the foresters took the body away.