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‘She was our pride': Asia's oldest elephant dies at 100

‘She was our pride': Asia's oldest elephant dies at 100

Independent10-07-2025
Vatsala, a 100-year-old tuskless female elephant believed to be Asia 's oldest, passed away in India 's Panna Tiger Reserve on Wednesday.
Affectionately known as Dadi - meaning 'grandmother' - by staff and caretakers, Vatsala spent the last three decades of her life at the reserve in Madhya Pradesh.
She died after collapsing near the Hinauta Elephant Camp, despite efforts by veterinarians and forest rangers, having suffered from blindness and digestive issues in her final years.
Vatsala was revered as a natural matriarch, guiding younger elephants and comforting them during illness or deliveries, despite never having had calves of her own.
Her exceptional age, well beyond the typical elephant lifespan, prompted widespread mourning from forest officials and villagers, and her body was cremated at the camp.
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