COIMBATORE: A herd of eight elephants damaged over 1,100 banana trees at Varapalayam near Thadagam on Wednesday. According to sources, the animals entered the farmland around 2 am. The farmer alleged that forest department staff did not turn up to drive away the animals despite being informed about it.
G Nagarathinam, a farmer, said she had grown plantains on one acre, of which 1,100 were damaged by the elephants. “Elephants usually enter the farmlands from the nearby forest located 1.5 km away. This is the first time the animals damaged so many plants, causing us a loss of over Rs 1 lakh,” she said.
When contacted, a forest department official said they received information only after the animals were driven away using crackers. In another incident, two forest staff were injured when the vehicle they were driving overturned while driving away elephants at Mukasimangalam near Alandurai.