GUWAHATI, Aug 11 � Quick and proactive action by the Assam forest department officials and local people saved an elephant calf from being displaced from its natal herd in Golaghat district. The calf, which was stuck in a tea garden ditch, was immediately rescued and reunited with its natal herd.
The incident occurred last week. The month-old male calf fell into a ditch in the Numalighur Tea Estate, as its herd comprising 38 individuals was passing through the garden.
The IFAW-WTI team at the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC) near Kaziranga National Park was alerted by the local forest beat office, after it was informed of the incident by Rajib Hazarika, assistant manager of Numalighur Tea Estate.
A team of forest guards and officials led by Pratap Saikia, the beat officer of Numaligarh Beat under Golaghat Territorial Division rushed to the spot. �As we reached the spot, we saw the elephant calf was just inside the drain and not able to move. The herd was waiting at a distance and shouting. To disperse the herd, we used whistles, fire crackers and fired one round of bullet in the air,� Saikia said.
The tactics worked and the herd left the site and waited at a distance in the garden. Wasting no time despite the risk of the herd returning, the forest guards and officials immediately lifted the elephant calf from the channel, while the herd waited at a distance.
After examining the calf for injuries and finding none, the team left the calf where the herd could see it. They kept a watch on the action of the herd. After a while, the mother along with a few other elephants approached the calf.
�They sniffed at the calf, seemingly tried to reassure the young one, and returned. A while later, the entire herd approached the calf, and took it along,� a WTI official said.
�Elephants pass through our garden regularly and we consider this as normal as our garden is located next to a reserve forest. There is a standby instruction in the garden to record any kind of elephant movement and not to disturb them unless fear human injury. That day�s incident was informed timely to the nearest forest office and we could save the calf. I was personally present in the location to take a stock of the situation,� said Vikas Joshi, general manager, Jorehaut Tea Limited, who has helped in elephant calf rescues in the past.
Dr Rathin Barman, deputy director, WTI and CWRC-in-charge, said, �Many elephant calves have been displaced unnecessarily and this is one of those rare instances when this was effectively avoided by prompt action of the authorities and people present there.�
Every time a young animal is found alone, CWRC promotes reunion with their mothers or groups as the case might be, as the primary response. Only when a reunion is unsuccessful is the individual admitted to CWRC for hand-rearing and long-term rehabilitation, Barman said.
Till date, IFAW-WTI staff from CWRC has assisted the forest department in reuniting 14 elephant calves with their natal herds. And seven permanently displaced calves have been hand-reared and released in the wild. Currently, six elephant calves are being hand-reared at CWRC for rehabilitation.
