Three elephant calves have died within 17 days in Chhattisgarh’s Dharamjaigarh forest division, prompting the forest department to call an expert team from Dehradun (Uttarakhand), Bareilly (Uttar Pradesh), and Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh) to investigate the causes of the deaths and train local staff.
On Sunday, a calf died after getting trapped in a marshy patch inside a pond area under the Pureda-Amjhar forest range despite rescue efforts. The elephant’s mother reportedly remained near the trapped calf for hours and attempted to free it by uprooting nearby trees.
Officials said the three deaths have raised fresh concerns over shrinking forest cover, increasing human-animal conflict, and the condition of water bodies inside elephant habitats.
“The team comprising wildlife experts and veterinarians will examine the causes of death, study the forest conditions, and train local staff in postmortem procedures, sample collection, and wildlife response,” said divisional forest officer Kishore Kumar Upadhyay. He said the exact cause behind the deaths is being examined, and no conclusion has been reached yet.
Officials said eight elephant calves have died in the forest division over the past five months due to drowning, getting trapped in marshland, and other unexplained circumstances. They are examining whether food and water scarcity is forcing elephant herds to move towards villages and ponds located near human settlements.
One elephant died after falling into a well in January. Multiple calf deaths were reported between March and May. The expert team is expected to spend time inside forest areas to assess habitat conditions and recommend preventive measures to reduce elephant mortality.
