From correspondents in West Bengal, India, 04:01 PM IST

An elephant was electrocuted in a tea garden in north Bengal Wednesday after it came in contact with a live wire, forest officials said.

According to the officials, the incident occurred in the morning when a herd comprising 15 to 20 elephants entered a tea garden at Jalpaiguri's Malbazar, around 600 km from Kolkata, in search of food.

One of the elephants, which strayed from the herd, came in contact with a live wire and died on the spot.

Forest officials said initial investigations revealed the elephant was electrocuted when it tried to touch the live wire with its trunk.

The elephant's body will be sent for a post-mortem examination to confirm the cause of its death, officials said.

Eleven elephants were run over by trains in north Bengal in the last two years. On July 25, a four-year-old elephant calf was knocked down by a train in Gulma Forest Range in Darjeeling district.

On July 22, an elephant's body was found inside the same forest range with multiple injury marks caused by poisoned arrows or sharp weapons. Officials said it had been attacked by poachers in Nepal while crossing over to India.

According to officials, elephants usually take the forest corridor from Mechi in Nepal to Sankosh in Assam, but on the way they often stray into villages and tea gardens in search of food.

(Staff Writer, © IANS)