(in): Baby 'Tragedy' lives on to battle the 'Killer Steel Monster'

[Guest guest]

http://www.hindustantimes.com/rssfeed/guwahati/Born-after-train-hit-mother-baby-\

elephant-dies-in-Assam-zoo/Article1-523206.aspx

<http://www.hindustantimes.com/rssfeed/guwahati/Born-after-train-hit-mother-baby\

-elephant-dies-in-Assam-zoo/Article1-523206.aspx>

Born after train hit mother, baby elephant dies in Assam zoo

 

*Rahul Karmakar <http://www.hindustantimes.com/Search/Rahul-Karmakar.aspx>,

Hindustan Times*

Guwahati, March 25, 201

 

A speeding goods train ejected him from his mother's womb prematurely on

February 28. Less than a month later - and 10 days after his mother was

prescribed euthanasia - the baby elephant died of enteritis.

 

Wildlife enthusiasts had been following the condition of the 'nameless' male

calf on Facebook and Twitter. Its death in the Assam State Zoo on Wednesday

night made them zero in on Baby Tragedy.

 

" Dame Daphne Sheldrick of the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Kenya has

suggested this name to possibly highlight the plight of elephants in India

vis-à-vis killer railway tracks, " said Azam Siddiqui, master trainer in

animal welfare.

 

The elephant calf was born seconds after a goods train hit two female

elephants on a track skirting the Deepor Beel Bird Sanctuary on the western

fringes of Assam's capital. Herds of elephants come down regularly from the

adjoining Rani Reserve Forest - on the other side of the track - to bathe

and feed on aquatic plants in Deepor Beel, a wetland.

 

One of the elephants died on the spot. The impact made the other deliver

beside the track before limping back into the forest. The incident happened

around 3 am, almost six hours after Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) and forest

officials warned Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) authorities about the

movement of a herd.

 

NFR, WTI and Assam Forest Department got together in 2008 to start a

coordination project to " mitigate elephant mortality due to train hits in

Assam " . It entailed joint patrolling on 16 elephant corridors across the

State and educating locomotive drivers.

 

 

" There's hardly any cooperation from NFR, and warnings are not heeded, as

was the case on February 28, " said a WTI coordinator. NFR's running staff

put the onus on higher officials, claiming they are not told how to go about

the 'mitigation business'.

 

Zoo DFO Narayan Mahanta said the calf was barely surviving when it was

brought to the zoo hours after the train-hit. " We tried our best to ensure

its survival, and its vulnerability was possibly due to the impact of the

train-hit, " he said.

 

While the baby was battling death in the zoo veterinary unit, its mother

collapsed near Sattargaon, a village close to Assam's border with Meghalaya.

" The elephant was in great pain when the villagers reported her on March 10.

We tried to unite mother with calf but on March 14, forest officials decided

she was beyond hope and euthanized her, " Siddiqui told Hindustan Times.

 

 

THE PRESS RELEASE

 

 

Dear all,

 

As you may all be aware of the baby elephant that died yesterday at the

State Zoo, Guwahati.

 

It may be noted that a lot of experts from all over the world were involved

in trying to arrange for the welfare of the injured elephant's mother who

had to be eventually euthanized.

 

Since the baby had no name given till the time of its death, hence an appeal

was made to the legendary elephant surrogate mother Dr. Dame Daphne

Sheldrick of the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust in Kenya (

http://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org)

 

Dr. Dame Daphne suggests that the baby be named 'Baby Tragedy' in Indian

language.

 

It is worth mentioning that Dr. Dame Daphne Sheldrick has many a times taken

keen interest in helping the elephants of India and specially Assam in

crisis.

 

It is Daphne whose organisation has trained several Veterinarians and staff

in India who are working for elephant rehabilitation in top organisations

like the WTI etc.

 

It is the training received from Daphne's institution that rehabilitation

and rescue projects in Assam and other parts of India have seen some

positive developments.

 

However Dr. Dame Daphne was extremely disappointed after she was briefed

about the pathetic condition of the injured elephant mother after her

accident due to a train hit on 28th February 2010.

 

She immediately wrote a letter to the officials asking them to take action.

 

Similar pressure was put in by Smt Maneka Gandhi, Mrs Suparna Bakshi

Ganguly, Member Task Force (Project Elephant) and Ms Belinda Wright,

Executive Director of the Wildlife Protection Society of India (WPSI).

 

Mrs. Gandhi is also taking the matter up with her counterpart at the

parliament Smt. Mamata Banerjee, the Railway Minister.

 

The Project Elephant Director immediately swung into action and the services

of Dr. Kushal Konwar Sharma, Expert Veterinary Surgeon on Elephants was

sought for.

 

As because the condition of the elephant had worsened, therefore it was

finally decided to humanely put her to sleep.

 

Meanwhile, since this end of lives for the baby 'Tragedy' and its mother is

not the last of the tragedies therefore a strong campaign is now the need of

the hour.

 

We are hopeful that the massacre of Indian elephants by 'Killer Steel

Monsters' we call Trains shall certainly stop now that the whole world is

watching and fighting together.

 

 

Azam Siddiqui

 

 

 

Master Trainer in Animal Welfare (2001)

Animal Welfare Board of India

 

Trained in 'Orphaned Elephant Management' (2003)

The David Sheldrick Widlife Trust, Kenya

 

 

 

 

 

---------- Forwarded message ----------

TRUST <emtrust

Thu, Mar 25, 2010 at 3:01 PM

Re: The Orphan is dead

azam24x7 <azam24x7

 

 

Azam,

 

Give the baby an Indian name ie the word for " Tragedy " or somehting like

that which sounds ok in your language.

 

Best wishes

 

Dame Daphne

 

________________

 

 

--

http://www.stopelephantpolo.com

http://www.freewebs.com/azamsiddiqui