: A female elephant, captured a year ago at Thiruvannamalai, delivered a male calf early this morning at Theppakadu in Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (MTR) about 55 km from here, forest department sources said.
With this new addition, the total number of elephants in MTR has gone up to 28, they said
The 23-year old female elephant was one of three elephants in the herd which strayed into habitations in Thiruvannamalai from Javadhu hills in August last year.
All the three were kept in kralls to train them as kumkis (tamed elephants). Officials came to know that this elephant was pregnant and expected to deliver in July or August.
However, it developed labour pain and delivered at four AM, they said.
Both calf and mother are in good health, the sources said.
