GUWAHATIWildlife veterinarians have treated a female wild elephant whose trunk was caught in a snare trap on the fringes of western Assam’s Raimona National Park.Forest guards first spotted the elephant, estimated to be 25 years old and accompanied by her calf, with a life-threatening wound near the park’s Daogen Gonthong anti-poaching camp on September 1. The camp is under the Sanfan Range of the Kachugaon Forest Division along the India-Bhutan border.The forest guards at the camp began tracking the elephant’s movement over the following days to plan a safe intervention.A joint veterinary team was deployed after the elephant was sighted near the camp on September 7. The team comprised Forest Veterinary Officer (Manas Tiger Reserve) Prabhat Basumatary, Wildlife Trust of India veterinarian Daoharu Baro, and Gossaigaon-based Veterinary Officer Pankaj Chakraborty.The team chemically immobilised the elephant to allow for a safe and thorough examination. The entire procedure was completed in about 30 minutes, after which the elephant was guided back into the forest.Sanfan Range Officer Biswajit Basumatary said snare traps are lethal hunting devices that can cause severe lacerations, tissue damage, fractures, and prolonged suffering, and may ultimately lead to death if an animal is unable to free itself or receive timely treatment.“The elephant has sustained a deep cut wound on her trunk caused by the tightly embedded wire snare, resulting in significant soft-tissue injury with pus discharge. We carefully removed the wire, followed by thorough wound cleaning, removal of dead tissue, antiseptic dressing, and provided appropriate wound management,” Dr. Baro said.Mustafizur Ali Ahmed, the Divisional Forest Officer of Kachugaon Forest Division, said forest officials will closely monitor the elephant over the next few days to assess her recovery.“There is a possibility that she may have encountered a snare trap in the fringe areas. We are closely monitoring the situation and taking all necessary measures to ensure that such an incident does not happen again,” he said. Published - September 08, 2026 04:57 pm IST