Alipurduar, July 16: Uttara, the female elephant which had been brought from Alipore Zoo in Calcutta last year and trained in Jaldapara National Park for patrolling, died this morning following an illness.

The 17-year-old kunki had fallen ill yesterday afternoon and died in the pilkhana in the north range of the Jaldapara forest.

"The vet of the forest department tried his best to save Uttara but failed. She lay on the ground and this morning, the doctor declared her dead. We are sending blood samples to the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology in Hyderabad to know the exact cause of the death," said Bhashkar J.V, the divisional forest officer of Jaldapara National Park

Uttara was brought to Jaldapara from Alipore zoo, along with two other elephants, Mumtaz and Phulwanti, in November, 2014. The three were trained for three months and Uttara was assigned the task of patrolling in February.

Elephant expert Parboti Barua said Uttara might not have adapted to the surroundings of the forest, leading to her death. "From childhood, Uttara received ready-made food in zoo and naturally, she was unable to forage for fodder on her own in the wild. The animal might have taken some leaves in Jaldapara, which caused gastroenteritis and ultimately her death. The foresters should think twice before shifting elephants from zoos to the wild. They should also keep a watch on Mumtaz and Phulwanti," Barua said over the phone.