(IN): Hurt jumbo suffers as experts mull options

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http://www.telegraphindia.com/1080426/jsp/northeast/story_9189346.jsp

 

Hurt jumbo suffers as experts mull options

A STAFF REPORTER

 

Guwahati, April 25: The elephant which dislocated its hip joint

after falling 30 feet into a pit continued to writhe in agony for

the second day today as experts continued to mull the mercy killing

option.

 

The principal chief conservator of forest (wildlife), M.C. Malakar,

said he had instructed his officials to take all necessary steps to

save the elephant.

 

" The condition of the elephant is deteriorating. We will take a

final decision only after the experts submit the report, " he said.

 

Moved by its plight, the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals

(Peta), India, an organisation dedicated to fighting animal abuse,

today wrote to railway minister Lalu Prasad to intervene and take

steps so that elephants are not hit by trains.

 

The elephant may have been hit by a train while crossing the tracks

before it fell nearly 30 feet into the pit. A forest official in

Karbi Anglong said though the elephant was taking food it would be

difficult to save it as its hip joint was slowing becoming paralysed

and it was not responding to stimulus.

 

" There may be a major dislocation in the hip joint, which could have

resulted from the fall, " he said.

 

A doctor from the Guwahati zoo reached the site this evening.

 

Two other experts from the College of Veterinary Sciences, Guwahati,

will go there tomorrow. The Karbi Anglong forest official said

nothing could be done to pull the elephant out of the pit as it

might further aggravate its injuries.

 

" We can neither pull it out of the pit nor can we examine the wounds

properly. It is a very tricky situation, " he said.

 

A veterinarian from the Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and

Conservation, who examined the elephant yesterday, said the

condition of the animal was not good.

 

" It may sound harsh but the ultimate decision has to be taken, " he

said.

 

Last year, a speeding train hit an adult elephant and two calves

close to the Rani-Garbhanga forest reserve on the outskirts of the

city.