In a heart-wrenching yet hopeful wildlife rescue, a newborn female elephant calf abandoned by her mother in Uttar Pradesh will find a new home at the Pilibhit Tiger Reserve (PTR). The calf, just 15 days old, was left by her mother shortly after birth in the Najibabad forest division of Bijnor district on December 2.
A Mother's Unusual Rejection
The incident is considered unusual by forest officials, as elephants are typically highly protective and possessive of their young. Despite persistent efforts by the forest staff over five days to reunite the mother and calf, the attempts proved futile. The mother elephant was found living alone in a small forest patch, separated from her herd, and consistently refused to accept her baby, even when the calf was placed close to her.
Bijnor's Divisional Forest Officer, Abhinav Raj, provided details of the calf's precarious start to life. The calf, named Shakti, rolled and fell into a pit during her birth. Her mother then moved away, leaving the newborn in a dangerous situation. Alert field staff who were monitoring the scene immediately launched a rescue operation to retrieve the vulnerable baby.
Preparations for a Safe New Home
Following the approval from Uttar Pradesh's Chief Wildlife Warden, Anuradh Vemuri, preparations began to shift the orphaned calf to a safer, managed environment. To ensure her safe relocation, Dr. Daksh Gangwar, the veterinary officer from Pilibhit Tiger Reserve, visited the Barhapur forest range in Najibabad on Wednesday to assess the calf's health condition.
PTR's Divisional Forest Officer, Manish Singh, explained the rationale behind choosing Pilibhit as the calf's new home. The distance between Najibabad and Pilibhit is considerably less than the alternative option, Dudhwa Tiger Reserve. This shorter journey is crucial for the safety and well-being of the 15-day-old calf, especially during the current spell of extreme cold weather.
Integration at Mala Forest Elephant Camp
The baby elephant will be housed at the Mala forest elephant camp within Pilibhit Tiger Reserve. This camp is already home to four other elephants that were relocated from Karnataka's Bandipur Tiger Reserve in the first week of November 2022. Here, Shakti will receive dedicated care and monitoring.
Currently, the calf is being kept on a milk diet and her health is under constant observation. This case follows a precedent set by the Dudhwa Tiger Reserve, which adopted two other orphaned female elephant calves from the Bijnor and Najibabad forest divisions in 2018 and 2023, respectively.
This rescue highlights the ongoing challenges and compassionate interventions in Indian wildlife conservation, ensuring a fighting chance for vulnerable animals abandoned in the wild.
