Boko: After being trapped in the Rajapara area under the Bondapara Forest Range in the West Kamrup Forest Division for four weeks, a wild adult female elephant succumbed to its injuries on Tuesday evening.
The elephant had sustained injuries to its right leg and other parts of the body, and despite all efforts by the locals to save it, the elephant passed away.
Locals, however, blamed negligence of the state forest department and the veterinary department for the death of the elephant. They said Rimpi Borah, the range officer of the Bondapara Range Office, was informed as soon as locals noticed the injured elephant. But the authorities did nothing to save the elephant, they alleged.
Arabinda Rabha, a local youth from the Bondapara area, condemned the forest and veterinary department for their alleged negligence. Rabha questioned why the powerful state government failed to provide proper and adequate treatment despite having two departments in Assam that are capable of providing proper care for such incidents.
“The Assam government recently condemned the news of the alleged torture of an elephant named ‘Joymala’ in Tamil Nadu. The same government failed to take care of the injured elephant in their own state,” Rabha said.
On the evening of Tuesday, February 28, 2023, the local public discovered the carcass of the elephant in a field near the Kukurmara Reserve Forest under the Bondapara Forest Range Office. Following the discovery, hundreds of people from the surrounding areas, including Rajapara, Dekapara, Kukurmara, Sukuniapara, Sonalipara, Kalitapara, Khorapara, and other places, arrived at the site to pay their last respects. They offered flowers and Assamese traditional ‘Gamosha’, burned incense, frankincense, and clay candles in honour of the wild elephant.
It all started on February 8, when Dr Kushal Knowar Sarma, also known as the “elephant doctor” of Assam and recipient of the Padma Shree award in 2020, arrived in the Rajapara area with a medical and forest team after receiving the news that an injured elephant required medical attention.
However, by the time they arrived, the elephant had already moved deeper into the jungle, and despite a day-long search, they were unable to locate it.
Later, locals alleged that the forest department did not take any further action to help the injured elephant. “We spotted the elephant many times, and according to them, the elephant was weak due to lack of food,” Rabha added.
“We have always revered elephants, but at the same time, we are regularly attacked by wild elephants. We have been trying to feed the injured elephant. She stands near a paddy field to drink water for many days and eats all the food items like sugarcane, vegetables, bananas, etc. which we gave to her,” added Arabinda Rabha.
Meghali Rabha, President of the Paschim Bekeli Gaon Panchayat, wrote a letter to Indira Kalita, the Director of the Assam State Veterinary Department, urging immediate action. Meghali Rabha said that one doctor from the veterinary department had contacted her and promised to inform her when they came to check on the elephant.
“But I think no one from the department came to check the elephant, as no one contacted me regarding the matter. However, people from the area are urging me to contact higher officials for treatment,” added Meghali Rabha.
Indira Kalita stated that the veterinary department only provides treatment for pets, cattle, and other domestic animals. “But,” Kalita added, “I told Meghali Rabha to inform the forest department.”
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When asked about the matter, Rimpi Borah, the range officer of the Bondapara Range Office, stated that she came to know that the elephant fell while trying to chase a cow that was grazing nearby and then couldn’t stand up. “A zoo doctor’s team came later for a postmortem report, and they said that many organs of the elephant had already failed before it died,” added Rimpi Borah.
When asked about the negligence, she replied that due to the major injuries, doctors refused to treat the elephant by darting. “And we gave her medicines mixed in food, but she never ate,” Borah replied.
Later, state forest officials buried the carcass of the elephant with the help of an excavator near the spot where the elephant died.
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