SAMBALPUR: IN a tragic incident, a five-year-old girl died and her parents, along with her younger sister, sustained injuries after an elephant damaged their house at Phatamal village in Sradhapali section under Rengali forest range in the district on Thursday.
The victim girl has been identified as Gitanjali Munda. Her injured parents Rajkumar and Mukta and three-year-old sister Gouri have been admitted to Sambalpur District Headquarters Hospital (DHH).
Reports said the pachyderm attacked the house at around 4 am while the family was asleep. The wall of the house collapsed and fell on the family members. All the four members of the family sustained injuries.
Rajkumar and Mukta raised an alarm. The villagers rushed to the spot and alerted the forest officials. The injured were rushed to the hospital. However, Gitanjali was declared brought dead at the hospital. Three other members of the family are undergoing treatment in the DHH.
Rengali Forest Range Officer Harihar Patra said the elephant had come from Padiabahal forest range of the district. The same elephant had earlier trampled an elderly man to death in Kutrajori forest under Padiabahal range. The animal got separated from its herd, he said.
Patra said a forest squad is monitoring the movement of the elephant. They will chase away the elephant during night. The deceased’s family will be provided compensation of `four lakh. A cheque of `40,000 will be provided and the rest amount will be handed over to the family, he added.
On June 17, an elderly man, Biranchi Narayan Panda (66) of Baham, was killed by the elephant while he was returning to his village riding a bicycle after collecting mangoes from Kutrajori forest.