A 17-year-old female wild buffalo
died in an enclosure at Udanti-Sitanadi Tiger Reserve of Chhattisgarh's Gariaband district, a forest official said on Wednesday.
The buffalo named Asha, who was kept in the wild buffaloes conservation centre within the sanctuary, was found dead in the early hours of Monday, he said.
The endangered wild buffalo is Chhattisgarh's state animal, locally known as 'van bhainsa' and is similar to a bison in appearance.
In view of the dwindling population of wild buffaloes in the state, the forest department took up in-situ conservation and breeding at Udanti-Sitanadi sanctuary.
Asha was kept in the enclosure for mating and reproduction since 2005-2006 and had given birth to six calves in the last 15 years, he said.
"On February 17, forest personnel spotted Asha in a tired state, following which the animal was kept under observation," the official said.
Principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF-wildlife) Atul Shukla and other senior officials from Raipur rushed to the spot, located around 175 km away from here, he said.
The post-mortem has revealed death due to natural causes, he added.
The Chhattisgarh government plans to bring female wild buffaloes from Assam to increase the population of the animal in the state.
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content
