Tamil Nadu: WCCB probe sought into temple elephant’s death

MADURAI: Following the death of a 42-year-old elephant in Suganeswarar temple in Salem, a wildlife activist from Madurai claimed that the death was not natural. The activist further sought an investigation by the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) into the death.

The elephant, Rajeswari, who had been reportedly ill for more than a year, died on Saturday. When Rajeswari collapsed on March 5, veterinarians from Namakkal and Chennai treated the mammal, but there was no improvement. On March 17, officials tried to move the elephant with an earth-mover, however, the efforts failed and resulted in her sustaining grievous injuries.

The activist, on condition of anonymity, questioned, "If the elephant died of natural causes, then could she take breakfast in the morning? Usually, elephants refuse to eat when they are ill. Official's statement over Rajeswari's death is contradictory. The cause and reason behind the injuries has to be analysed."

The elephant was brought to Gorimedu, two years ago, however, after shifting a medical report of elephant was not submitted to the forest department. "A few NGOs submitted reports about the elephant to the court. These NGOs were not even registered with the Animal Welfare Board. How could they allow members of such NGOs to assess the animal?," he asked.

He further added that no veterinary doctor who had prior tested the animal were in the team of doctors, who treated her on the last day.

"Also water tank that was built for the elephant was removed without any valid reasons. There was no record on how the first injury happened to the animal. The temple authorities were also not maintaining the records of the animals," he said.

The activist sent a letter to the Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) seeking an investigation into the death.