BHIMDATTANAGAR: A wild elephant was found dead at Kha Gaun in Punarwas Municipality of Kanchanpur district on Friday.

An estimated five-year-old male elephant from a nearby jungle across the border in India was found lying dead in a local paddy field, said the Kanchanpur District Forest Office.

Shiva Prasad Sharma of the DFO suspected that the elephant could have died due to illness since it did not have any injuries on its body but only a bloated stomach.

The elephant was buried after due legal process on the same day. A team from the Area Forest Office has started investigation into the death of the baby elephant.

Herds of elephants inhabiting the Dudhwa National Park in India, stray into Nepal's Punarwas area from time to time.