Forest Department officials rescued a one-month-old elephant calf, which had fallen into a 10-foot deep water tank at Periyathadagam on the city outskirts early today.
Hearing the trumpeting of the calf, the villagers alerted the forest officials and the anti-poaching squad.
The officials went to the spot, chased the mother elephant and three other elephants.
They later used an earthmover to demolish a portion of the tank to enable the calf to climb up and rejoin the herd.