Coimbatore: An eight-year-old male elephant died after it fell into a contour canal near Udumalpet in the Anamalai Tiger Reserve on Saturday.Udumalpet forest staff spotted an elephant inside the contour canal, during routine patrol and informed concerned officials. A forest team reached the spot and confirmed the elephant’s death after checking on it. “Elephants frequent the canal to drink water. One of the elephants which had come to drink water at the canal, slipped, and fell inside. It died from the impact,” said Udumalpet forest ranger BK Vasu. Forest veterinary officer S T Meiyarasan and veterinary assistant surgeon conducted a postmortem in the presence of forest officials and NGO representatives. The preiminary report confirmed that the elephant died from the impact that it suffered during the fall. The carcass was later buried inside the Udumalpet reserve forest.
