In a heartwarming incident, the forest officials helped a lost baby elephant reunite with its mother at Assam’s Kaziranga National Park. The incident, captured on camera, is now melting hearts online.
Retd. IFS officer Susanta Nanda shared the heart-touching video on his X handle and wrote: “Chotu got separated from mother at Kaziranga. It was united later with its mother. The forest officials applied mother’s dung to the calf to suppress human smell. Happy reunion at the end."
The video shows a baby elephant running towards a forest official's vehicle and then frantically circling, sniffing, and pacing in search of its mother. Realising that the calf had been separated from the herd, the officers jumped into action and helped reunite the baby with its mother.
Before reuniting them, one of them gently rubbed the calf with the mother’s dung on its body to mask any human scent, ensuring that the mother would recognise and accept her calf. After a brief moment, the calf could be seen walking away with its mother, only to let out a soft trumpet, seemingly saying thank you.
“Haan. Ja, Ja Ja (Yes, go ahead)," the officer could be heard saying.
The post was showered with many heartwarming messages. , One user wrote, “Oh, this is such a beautiful story. Thank you," while another said, “What a wonderful outcome for Chotu and its mother. The dedication of the forest officials to reunite them is truly commendable and a testament to their care for wildlife."
In response to multiple questions about the calf being applied with its mother’s drug, a user explained, “For those who don’t know: Baby elephants may be rejected by their mothers if separated and handled by humans. If a calf smells too much like humans, the mother might reject it. That’s why he applied his mother’s dung."
