The heartbreaking story of a sick elephant and her calf in Tamil Nadu

IAS officer Supriya Sahu shared a heartbreaking post about an ailing elephant who was found in a weakened state, accompanied by her 2-year-old calf. Upon noticing her, Tamil Nadu forest officers sprang into action to save her, but she died. And, the calf was united with another elephant herd.

Despite the tireless efforts of four experienced veterinarians who worked tirelessly throughout the day and night, they were unable to save the mother elephant, leaving the forest team at the Sathyamangalam range devastated.

However, the forest officers' focus swiftly shifted to ensuring the well-being of the orphaned young elephant. Recognising the importance of uniting her with a herd for her survival in the wild, the team located a nearby elephant herd and facilitated her integration.

Currently, the young elephant appears to have been accepted by the herd and is seen moving closely with her foster mother.

However, she also mentioned, "we need to watch this for some time to see if the calf is accepted." To confirm this, the ground team is now vigilant, and using thermal drone cameras and experienced elephant trackers to monitor the calf's movement closely.

"We will do everything to ensure the well-being of the young one," Supriya Sahu wrote in her post.

See her post here:

Watch the video of the rescued calf here:

Since being posted online, the post went viral with over 12k views on X. People expressed their thoughts in the comments section of the post.

Earlier on March 3, at the same tiger reserve, Tamil Nadu foresters discovered a distressed elephant along with her two calves, including a sub-adult male and a very young female baby elephant, in a dire state. The mother elephant was too weak to move and had been separated from her native herd. The mother died on March 5 despite the efforts of four experienced veterinarians and experts and the babies were united with a herd that accepted them wholeheartedly.