PALAKKAD: A five-year-old wild elephant died at Veetikundu near Kottathara in the Agali forest range of Attappadi on Saturday. Since the jaw bone of the baby elephant was damaged and the tongue slit, it raised concerns of similarities with the death of a pregnant wild elephant on May 27.Arun Sakaria , the forest veterinary surgeon who conducted the post-mortem of the elephant at Veetikundu in Attappadi, told TNIE that the jaw bone was damaged and the tongue was also slit .
He said that the baby elephant was unable to eat or drink water and the post-mortem showed it had not eaten for four to five days. He said that the elephant also had pneumonia and a small tumour in the stomach which was not acute.However, he added that the samples of the injured portions have been collected and sent to the Regional Chemical examination Lab in Kozhikode. We have taken many samples and all possibilities would be explored, he added.
The results usually would take 15 days to be received and only then will the exact reasons be known. The baby elephant was later cremated in the same area. Meanwhile , Divisional Forest Officer of Mannarkad K K Sunil Kumar said that the baby elephant appeared weak and had been standing in the area from Friday morning. It would not have eaten since the injury occurred, he added.
Pregnant Jumbo death: Accused yet to be traced
Abdul Kareem and Riyazudheen of Ambalappara, the first and second accused in the death of the pregnant wild elephant which had eaten a coconut filled with fire crackers kept as a wild boar snare in Thiruvazhamkunnu, are yet to be traced, said the DFO, the joint investigating officer in the case with Shoranur DySP N Muralidharan. Only the third accused P Wilson, who was a rubber tapper in the estate owned by the first and second accused, was arrested on June 5. However, even after a month, the duo is absconding. The first two accused had moved the High Court seeking anticipatory bail and the next hearing is scheduled to be held on July 15. The killing of the elephant had created a national outrage on social media, with many calling for the arrest of those who committed the heinous act.