Kunki elephant captured after 12-day pursuit

Alipurduar: After 12 days of relentless efforts, the Forest department successfully brought back Sundar, the Kunki elephant of Jaldapara, who had killed his mahout and fled into the jungle.

Over the last 11 days, Sundar had eluded the Forest department’s pursuit, but on Tuesday, he couldn’t escape the vigilant eyes of the forest workers. Assisted by 8 Kunki elephants, the forest staff attempted to encircle him since Tuesday morning.

Despite these efforts, Sundar resisted. Only after administering two tranquiliser shots, Sundar was eventually brought to Halong Pilkhana.

According to Forest department sources, Sundar will undergo a one-month isolation period with rigorous observation by the veterinarians. If he exhibits complete normalcy after this period, he will be considered for use by the Forest department once again. Sundar, aged 22 and born in Jaldapara, had never shown aggression towards mahouts before. However, on November 25, he fatally attacked his own mahout, Deepak Karji, near Jaldapara TEC Beat.

Sundar then disappeared into the deep forest, reappearing days later in the Jaldapara West Range.

A significant team of foresters with Kunki elephants had previously surrounded Sundar, but he managed to evade capture. On Tuesday, forest staff, accompanied by 8 Kunki elephants, swiftly reached the Jaldapara East Range after locating Sundar.

Navjeet De, Assistant Wildlife Warden (AWLW) of Jaldapara National Park, commented: “Sundar attacked his own mahout, resulting in his death. Sundar displayed signs of musth (a periodic condition in male elephants). Naturally, we had to take extra precautions over the last 12 days.

Today, Sundar was captured successfully. He is healthy and normal, and strict surveillance will be maintained over him for the next month. Only after receiving the green signal from the veterinarian will he be considered for reassignment to the Forest department.”