The forest department investigates the theft of tusks from the car carcass in the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) in Nilgiris.
The ministry said on Wednesday that the investigation of the incident, which occurred within the forest reach of Singar near BokaPuram, in a country belonging to a private hotel.
P. ARUNKUMKUAR, Deputy Director of MTR (Buffer Zone), said the remains of the elephant, including his skull, were recently discovered when the locals cut bamboo on the ground. Once the forest officials were announced, they visited the area and noticed that ivory tusks were missing.
They registered the case and started investigating the incident. Mr. Arunakar said that the elephant was considered to be about 50 years, and that on the basis of a preliminary investigation seemed that the elephant could die of natural causes. “However, we took samples for forensic analysis to identify the cause of death,” he said.
The ministry believes that the animal could have died about three months ago and that local criminals could steal tusks to sell it to the buyer. They said they identified two suspects and were looking for them.
Published – 6. August 2025 17:18
