Baby elephant injured in a suspected bomb blast at Chhattisgarh Tiger Reserve
Chhattisgarh: A suspected bomb explosion in the Udanti-Sitandi Tiger Reserve in Chhattisgarh injured an elephant calf. Varun Jain, the director of the Udanti-Sitanadi Tiger Reserve, said on Monday that they had learned of a significant quantity of blood in an area used for herding elephants.
According to Jain, the wounded calf was just five or six years old. An anti-poaching squad carried out the investigation and found that the blood streaks were dispersed across at least six kilometers.
“We learned that a significant quantity of blood was seen in an area where the herd of elephants was wandering from the region close to Udanti-Sitanadi Tiger Reserve. We followed the blood smears for foot prints for 6-7 kilometers while the anti-poaching squad carried out the inquiry. We discovered that the wounded animal was an elephant. Our workers discovered a five- to six-year-old elephant calf using drone footage,” the Wildlife Refuge’s director said.
The remnants of the potassium bomb were found nearby, Jain said, adding that the calf had been hurt, its jaw was swollen, and it had a leg injury.
Its leg is also injured, and its mouth is puffy up. The remaining potassium bomb was also discovered by us. This suggests that the elephant calf was hurt by either walking on the bomb or chewing on it. In addition to the dog squad, we have contacted a team of doctors from Raipur,” he said.
We’re trying to find a hunter. For anybody who provides any information on the hunters, we are offering a reward of Rs 10,000. In addition, we have complained about the explosive object to the police. Up until now, we could only locate the affected calves. We will determine the degree of the injuries using a thermal drone. If necessary, we will put the calf to sleep in order to cure it. Jain said, “We have requested clearance for the same.
According to the Reserve Director, hunters often set up potassium bombs to target wild boars.
“However, we will have to find out the intent, whether it was meant for the elephant or the wild boar,” he said.
