Elephant calf’s sudden death shocks MTR camp

Ooty: It was, indeed, a sad day for the famed kumki elephant camp at the Mudumalai tiger reserve (MTR) as 3-year-old Kaveri, the young calf at the camp, died all of a sudden on Monday afternoon.

Ever playful and naughty, Kaveri was a special attraction at the elephant camp for visitors. Children visiting the camp were keen on moving close to it because Kaveri used to attract them with its unique hairstyle. Kaveri hit the headlines in July last year when Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa offered food to it when she visited the MTR.

Mr Pushpakaran, forest range officer at MTR, said Kaveri was found abandoned deep inside the MTR woods about three years ago. It was captured and became a ward of the elephant camp in MTR since then. In fact, it was christened Kaveri by the Chief Minister earlier in 2012, he added.

Mr D. Chandran, deputy director of MTR, said Kaveri had been in good health all these days. On Monday morning, it was its usual self. But around 11 am, it began to suffer from dysentery and collapsed. Efforts made by the forest veterinary unit at MTR to save it failed as Kaveri died around 2 pm, he said.

An autopsy was performed on its carcass on Monday evening and samples were being sent to the laboratory for analysis and the forensic science laboratory to ascertain the cause of death.