Goalpara (Assam): A wild elephant calf has been admitted to the IFAW-WTI field station near Manas National Park, Assam, for hand-raising and rehabilitation.

The calf was found alone near Goraimari village in Goalpara district by the local people on November 1.

“It was among a herd of elephants that entered Goraimari, attracted by standing crops. It had fallen into a pond and was rescued by the people of Goraimari. As soon as we got the information, we dispatched a team of (Forest Department) officials who went to receive the calf along with police personnel, and also alerted the IFAW-WTI Mobile Veterinary Service (MVS) unit,” said Amol Sarma, Divisional Forest Officer, Goalpara.

As per rehabilitation protocol for displaced wild elephant calves, the Forest Department officials attempted to reunite the calf with its herd, which at that time was about a kilometre away. However, anticipating return of the herd to the village in case reunion was attempted, the local people turned hostile and disrupted the process.

With the reunion attempt disrupted, the authorities transferred the calf to the Goalpara DFO office, where it was treated by the IFAW-WTI veterinary team.

“The calf is currently in good health. However, it is really unfortunate that we did not get the opportunity to reunite it with its herd. We have moved it to our field station in Kokrajhar,” said Dr Bhaskar Choudhury, Manager, WTI. “There are reports of crop damage in hundreds of bighas of farmlands in Goraimari caused by elephants recently. The people were very aggressive and even threatened the authorities to keep away from the village.”

The calf will eventually join the six orphaned calves, currently being hand-raised at the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation (CWRC) near Kaziranga National Park, when they are relocated to Manas National Park for a soft-release. The relocation is scheduled for February next year.

Five hand-raised elephant calves, rescued in different instances in Assam, have been released in the wild in Manas National Park by the state Forest Department assisted by IFAW-WTI.