An elephant calf died in Jalpaiguri on Saturday morning after it fell into a drain at the plantations of the Karbala tea estate in Banarhat block of the district.

As workers of the garden headed for the plantations to pluck tea leaves, they spotted the carcass with a full-grown female elephant standing guard.

They informed foresters. Soon, a team from the wildlife squad stationed in Binnaguri reached the garden.

When the foresters tried to reach the carcass of the calf, the mother elephant got agitated and attacked their vehicle and toppled it.

“It seems the mother elephant is angry. She stood near the carcass from morning till evening. Some other elephants of the herd to which the mother and calf belong stood in the vicinity. We have to wait till the elephants leave the spot to recover the calf’s carcass. In the evening, we will try to steer the herd, including the mother, back into the forest,” said a forest officer.

Hundreds of curious onlookers reached the garden to catch a glimpse of the elephants. A team from Banarhat police station had to control the crowd.

Safari pet death

A pet elephant of the state forest department died at the Bengal Safari Park, near Siliguri, on Saturday.

Sources said Laxmi, 68, was brought to the park in 2016 and engaged in the elephant safari for visitors, with Urmila, another pet elephant.

“The elephant had old-age ailments. The post-mortem report suggests heart failure,” said an official of the park.

Elephant attack

A wild elephant strayed into the BDO Office Para of Chalsa in Matiali block of Jalpaiguri on Friday night and attacked resident Nakul Roy, who was on a motorcycle. Roy left his vehicle and ran.

The elephant vandalised 10 to 12 houses and damaged the boundary walls and gates of some more houses before leaving.

Foresters from the Khunia wildlife squad went to the spot to take stock. Residents demanded that foresters intensify patrolling.

“We suspect elephants are not getting enough fodder in the forest and thus straying into human settlements,” said Manabendra Dey Sarkar, an environmentalist in Chalsa.