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I t was
roughly around ten
years back that my husband
was posted at Rupajuli T.E. near Tezpur…
a four-year stay and one of our most memorable
postings. I came into close contact with wildlife here, with
each day unfolding exciting new experiences! Encounters
with elephants were a regular feature and everyone had a
story to relate by the end of the day. There were leopards,
wild hares and jackals too in the garden! But the elephant
herds accompanied by their calves created havoc at night,
breaking labour quarters, eating paddy in the nearby fields,
injuring villagers etc.They returned to the nearby jungles in
the morning, but some stayed on at times, causing immense
problems to the garden workers.
Fights between bull elephants were a common feature... a
scary sight indeed! They would also invade the bungalows
and destroy the vegetable garden, fruit trees, flower beds and
pots too. Every evening the workers got ready with
‘mashaals’ (torches) and drums to scare the elephants away!
One early October morning, the maid came and told me
that a new born baby elephant had been trapped in a ‘nullah’
(drain) in the garden. The mother had tried desperately to
pull her out, but in vain. The herd stayed till the morning
and left.The drain was deep and the little calf was stuck in
an awkward position. Since the Section was near the
bungalow, I decided to go and see the calf. I called up my
husband, Shankar, at his office and asked him to take me
along with him to the site.
Once we reached there, we saw that two workers had cut the
drain from one end to broaden it, while constructing a raised
platform with loosened soil at the other end. Shankar then
went in on the other side and tried to push the calf forward,
so that she could walk out from the broadened end. Since it
had rained the night before and was still drizzling, the whole
area was slippery, which was causing a lot of hindrance to
the rescue operation.The calf also seemed injured as the tip
of her trunk was bleeding slightly. She definitely had to be
handled with care! Finally, the ‘chowkidar’ and Shankar tried
to lift her slightly – a difficult procedure, but they somehow
managed to raise her on to a higher level. By then lots of
children and garden workers had gathered around us. All the
shouting and screaming made the calf nervous and she
refused to get up further. After a lot of effort they finally
managed to take her out of the drain.
I then noticed she was wobbly on her feet and could not
stand straight. She kept falling down, but finally after an
hour or so she started walking around, and we all heaved a
sigh of relief ! Slowly, we guided her and took her to our
bungalow, which was close by. Once she was in the
bungalow compound, she happily went around trumpeting
every once in a while! With the help of the ‘mali,’ I gave her
a bath and cleaned all the mud from her body. Now the big
question was what to feed her. She looked hungry and tired.
The Bearer cut a cycle tyre tube, cleaned it, and then poured
water and milk through it, trying to feed her. But in vain!
She refused to drink anything and just kept trumpeting.
With some advice and contact numbers from Mrs Namita
Ahmed at Phulbari T.E., Shankar contacted the Elephant
Rescue Centre at Kaziranga National Park. The officials
there agreed to come to the estate and take the calf. So,
around 4pm the ambulance arrived, bearing two forest
officials and a veterinary doctor from Kaziranga, armed with
milk and a huge feeding bottle. What an amazing sight it
was when the doctor put the bottle in her mouth, and she
guzzled up the entire milk! He then checked her, diagnosing
a navel infection and an injury to the tip of her trunk, due
to which she had fever and required
immediate treatment.
We had to let her go reluctantly, but were
happy that she was in safe kept
in touch with the authorities and enquired
about her health from time to time. She
had to undergo an operation of the navel
area as well as the tip of the trunk, and
recovered completely.
A few years later when Shankar was
posted at Dekorai T.E., we visited her at
the Kaziranga Rescue Centre. She looked
so happy and healthy in the company of
other elephants! The officials were trying
to rehabilitate all the elephants there into
the wild, but it was not easy, as the
elephants kept returning to the Rescue
Centre by the evening! Though she did not seem to
recognise us fully, she was very friendly and we thoroughly
enjoyed spending some time with her.The tip of her trunk
was permanently damaged though – a handicap for an
elephant.The officials told us that she would soon be shifted
to Manas National Park, where she would be trained to
carry tourists for safaris.With a heavy heart I left the Rescue
Centre praying to God for her safety and good health. And
yes, she was named Rupa by the veterinary doctor there, as
she was rescued from Rupajuli!
~ Tanuka Mitra
Attabarrie T.E.
Rescuing
Rupa
World Wild It’s
a
58 January 2016 January 2016 59