Crowd cheers as trapped elephant calf escapes from canal in eastern India

An elephant calf, stranded inside a narrow canal, was rescued with the help of forest department officials in eastern India's Odisha state.

An elephant calf, stranded inside a narrow canal, was rescued with the help of forest department officials in eastern India's Odisha state.

The incident took place in Gunudei village, under the Dhenkanal Sadar Forest Range, on October 5.

Footage shows the elephant calf climbing out on its own, accompanied by its mother, who was waiting on the edge of the canal.

A crowd cheers as the calf eventually makes it out of the canal under the watchful eye of its mother.

The calf, believed to be at least one-month-old, fell into the open canal while crossing the road with its herd of about 20 elephants.

The calf remained trapped for hours after its mother failed to pull it from the canal.

On being informed, forest personnel reached the scene and placed sandbags at the edge of the canal to build a built a platform for the elephant calf, officials said.

According to local sources, the mother elephant stood silently and observed the rescue operation that lasted for more than two hours.