Assam: Case Registered Against NRL For Burying Wild Elephant

The Assam Forest Department has registered a case against the Numaligarh Refinery in Central Assam’s Golaghat district after forest officials recovered the remains of a wild elephant from the refinery’s township on July 19 morning.

The adult female elephant was electrocuted after coming into contact with an exposed armored cable in a park near the Numaligarh Refinery Limited (NRL) township on the morning of July 18, as per a report in The Hindu.

As per reports, the carcass of the female elephant was discovered at around 8 am in the park. However, the refinery officials informed the forest officials about the discovery only in the evening after burying it.

“This is a grave mistake as the elephant is a Schedule 1 species, leading us to register a case under the Wildlife (Protection) Act of 1972. The elephant may have been electrocuted. However, this did not justify the township’s decision to bury it without first informing the Forest Department,” The Hindu reported, quoting Golaghat’s Divisional Forest Officer, Sushil K Thakuria.

Department officials exhumed the carcass on July 19 and conducted a post-mortem after registering the case. The autopsy report is expected by July 23.

The exact cause of death is under investigation, but it appears the elephant may have stepped on the armored cable laid on the ground and been electrocuted. There is also a possibility of cable leakage, as reported by The Hindu.

Meanwhile, reacting to the incident, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had pledged to take appropriate legal action in accordance with wildlife protection laws.

The man-elephant conflict has been on the rise in Assam over the past few years, and the state has been recording increasing numbers of deaths of both humans and elephants.

Incidents of elephants raiding and destroying croplands and houses have also seen a surge in Assam.

According to a recent study published by Biodiversity and Conservation Journal, 80 elephants and 70 humans die each year on average because of negative human-elephant interactions in Assam, reported Down To Earth.

Also Read: Wild elephant relocated to Manas National Park in Assam after five-day rescue operation