Elephant dies after it falls in drain; 3 trapped in wetland

Jorhat (Assam): A female elephant calf died Monday after it fell into a drain in a tea garden in Numaligarh area of Golaghat district, forest officials said.

The elephant fell into a narrow six-feet deep drain between rows of tea bushes in Bihara tea estate yesterday. Efforts were made to rescue the animal, but it was found dead this morning, they said.

The pachyderm was buried after post-mortem.

Meanwhile, a bullet-injured female elephant with her two calves were trapped in a wetland for the last five days at Biswanathghat in Sonitpur district.

The elephant, suspected to be injured in forest personnel firing while they were driving back the straying animals into the forests, was not allowing anybody to come near her for providing medical care or food, they said.