7 elephants were found dead in Bandhugarh Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh.


New Delhi:

Seven elephants have died in Madhya Pradesh's Bandhugarh Tiger Reserve and three others are undergoing medical treatment, wildlife officials told NDTV. The cause of death of the seven is yet to be ascertained. The post-mortem is being conducted at the School of Wildlife Forensics and Health in Jabalpur, assisted by veterinarians from the state's Panch and Kanha forests.

Sources told NDTV that farmers sprayed pesticides on the crops and this may have caused the deaths.

The health of the 11th and 12th members of the herd is now normal.

Senior wildlife officials including National Tiger Conservation Authority Central Zone Assistant Inspector General Nandakshwar Kale are present on the occasion.

And, amid fears of elephant poaching, the Delhi-based Wildlife Crime Control Bureau has set up a committee to investigate the killings. Along with this, the state level inquiry is also going on.

The crisis started on Tuesday when two elephants were found dead during a routine patrol in the reserve area. Five more of the gentle giants were found nearby and are in exceptional condition.

Bandhugarh Reserve was in the news in August after the death of tigers led to a major management shake-up. An exclusive report – highlighted by NDTV on August 1 – identified red flags in the department's handling of tiger deaths, including procedural lapses and personnel negligence.

Read on Big change amid tiger deaths in Madhya Pradesh's wildlife department

The NDTV report helped shed light on the alarming rise in tiger deaths in Bandhugarh and Shahdol forest areas between 2021 and 2023. 43 tigers died during this period. Some of the deaths were related to poaching and some to negligence of wildlife officials.

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