Pregnant wild elephant dies after cracker filled pineapple explodes in her mouth

Kochi, June 02: A pregnant wild elephant in Kerala's Silent Valley Forest fell victim to an act of human cruelty after a pineapple filled with powerful crackers offered by a man exploded in her mouth when she chomped on it, a senior forest officer said here on Tuesday.

"Her jaw was broken and she was unable to eat after she chewed the pineapple and it exploded in her mouth. It is certain that she was offered the pineapple filled with crackers to eliminate her," Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Wildlife) and Chief Wildlife Warden Surendrakumar told PTI.

The incident was reported from the fringe areas of the Silent Valley in Attappadi. Surendrakumar said the elephant died at Velliyar River in Malappuram district on May 27. He said the post-mortem revealed that the pachyderm was pregnant.

"I have directed the forest officials to nab the culprit. We will punish him for 'hunting' the elephant," he said. The issue of the pachyderm's tragic death came to light after Mohan Krishnan, a forest officer, posted an emotional note on his Facebook page, narrating the death of the elephant in the waters of the Velliyar River.

"When we saw her she was standing in the river, with her head dipped in the water. She had a sixth sense that she was going to die. She took the Jalasamadhi in the river in a standing position", Krishnan, who was deputed to bring the elephant back to the shore, wrote.

He also posted the photo of the elephant standing in the river water.