Assam: Asia’s Oldest Domesticated Elephant Bijuli Prasad Dies

BIHALI: The oldest domesticated elephant of the continent as per the records, perished in the early hours of Monday. This elephant was called Bijuli Prasad and was said to be about 89 years of age.

Bijuli Prasad was a resident of the George Williamson Magor tea estate of Sonitpur. It was also the living symbol for not only the group or the estate but also the entire region. According to local reports, it passed away at around 3.30 AM on Monday and officials from the forest department also visited the location after the death of the elephant.

The elephant was reportedly brought from the Dikrai Tea Garden to the Borgang Tea Garden when it was still very young and soon became famous by the name Bijuli Prasad. After the Borgang Tea Garden was sold, it was brought and kept in the Bihali Tea Estate.

It can be noted Bijuli Prasad had its tusks cut four times. The Divisional Forest Officer of Borgang, Chakrapani Roy and his team reached the spot in the morning and carried out the post-mortem before giving it a proper burial. The death of the animal has cast a shadow not only on the people of the tea estate but also on the people of the district. Conservationists and nature enthusiasts also expressed their grief regarding the loss of the life of this magnificent animal.

Amidst the worrying statistics of casualties of man-elephant conflict in Udalguri district, a woman was trampled to death by a wild jumbo at Kamalabari in Mazbat of Udalguri district on Friday night. According to reports, a loner separated from a herd roaming around the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border entered a house and trampled Bilaisri Daimari, (45), wife of Jiten Daimari to death. The other inhabitants of the house managed to escape. Mazbat Forest Beat Office officials and Mazbat Police later retrieved the body and sent it to Udalguri Civil Hospital for post-mortem. “The fragmented forest landscape in Udalguri district is causing a reduction in natural habitats for these elephants leading to the lives of humans and elephants colliding dangerously,” said wildlife activist Jayanta Kumar Das.

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