Rare Nilgai rescued in Naogaon

The once-believed to be extinct Nilgai -- the largest antelope in Asia -- was rescued by local administration from Jotbazar village of Naogaon's Manda upazila yesterday.

It was taken to the animal rescue centre in Rajshahi last evening after the administration handed it over to the wildlife conservation division of the forest department, said Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Mushfiqur Rahman.

“The Nilgai has injuries all over its body,” said Rahman.

The nilgai was declared extinct in Bangladesh by the International Union for Conservation of Nature but it was found in India's West Bengal, said Jahangir Kabir, an inspector of the wildlife conservation division in Rajshahi.

The animal had also been captured in Thakurgaon last year.

Manda locals chased the antelope when they found it roaming around Jotbazar area around 9:30am, according to the officials.

Surprised by the presence of a creature unseen before, hundreds of villagers cornered the animal in a pond and later caught it.

“The villagers were preparing to slaughter it for a meal,” said Jahangir Kabir.

However, someone later reported the capture of a “big deer” and informed UNO Rahman.

He then sent local forest officials and policemen to the scene, who rescued the animal. It was taken to the UNO office in the afternoon and handed over to the forest department.

“Our first priority is to give treatment to the Nilgai as it bears numerous injuries,” said Inspector Kabir.

The forest department rescued another female Nilgai from Thakurgaon last year which is still at the rescue centre in Dinajpur, he said.

“We will seek advice from higher officials on whether to arrange a breeding for the Nilgai or release it back to the wild,” he said.

Nilgais were found in the north of Bangladesh until 1940s when they were last sighted in Tetulia and afterwards were declared extinct from this country.