Elephant calf will die if TN Forest Dept tries to reunite it with herd, says PIL

The calf Ammukutty had strayed away from the herd last month, and the Madras High Court has now sought a status report in the matter.

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The Madras High Court has sought a status report from the state's Chief Wildlife Warden on Ammukutty, an elephant calf that is struggling to reunite with its herd, after it strayed away from them last month. The court's intervention is in response to a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by S Muralidharan, a Chennai-based animal-lover. He has argued that the Forest Department's attempt to unite the calf with the herd is 'suicidal'. A Division Bench of Justices M Sathyanarayanan and N Seshasayee has asked that the Department file a report in this regard by October 17.

According to the PIL, the three-month old female elephant calf arrived at Kadambur village of Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve in Erode district on September 27. While the Forest Department had sent the calf back to the Kadambur forest, it found its way to the Dhimbam area in Hasanur forest on October 2, about 10 km away from where it was first left. The calf was inspected by K Ashokan, the wildlife veterinary surgeon at the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve, who found the elephant to be weak with wounds on its body. The calf was weak due to starvation and dehydration, says the petition.

Muralidharan states that after the calf was fed and treated for a week, the Forest Department once again attempted to reunite the calf with its herd on October 10.

“The Forest Department personnel are monitoring whether the calf is being accepted by any herd of elephants, or is being rejected," the petition states, adding that a calf would not be disowned by a herd or its mother unless under special circumstances like the calf being immobile, handicapped, weak or unable to keep pace with the moving herd.

“I state that generally wild animals would refuse to take back its young ones if it has human touch and scent. The probability of otherwise is very low. Under these circumstances it would be difficult to unite a calf with a herd.... I state that the forest department's love to unite the calf with a herd is an ill-advised strategy. The said attempt is rather suicidal. The left alone calf in the forests cannot fend for itself as it is too young. It has not acclimatized/ adopted to take its natural food. Human hand is required to maintain and bring up the calf; else it will starve to death. The left alone young calf would be an easy and hearty meal for a lurking tiger/ panther nearby, or to a pack of hyenas or wild dogs. The calf hasn't developed the strength of an elephant to fight the predators.”

Stating that Ammukutty won't survive the experiments of the Forest Department, the PIL asks that the court to restrain the Department from leaving the calf in a forest. The petition suggests rearing the elephant in a zoo or elephant camp.