NILGIRIS: A 14-year-old boy was killed in a wild elephant attack at Pakkana in Pandalur taluk of the Nilgiris district on Tuesday night.
The deceased, identified as S Mishap, was studying in class eight at a private school, and was attacked around 7.15 pm while returning home on foot along Pakkana Road with a few friends after getting a haircut. An elephant that was grazing nearby suddenly charged at him. He was walking a short distance away from his friends.
Hearing his screams, his friends alerted local residents, who rushed to the spot, chased the animal away, and took the injured boy to a private hospital in Sulthan Bathery, Kerala. Forest department personnel on night patrol also reached the area and assisted the public. However, he was declared dead at the hospital.
The incident has intensified concerns over increasing human-animal conflict in Pandalur and Gudalur taluks. A large number of people, including the boy’s relatives, gathered at the hospital, demanding immediate measures from the forest department to prevent further such incidents.
Sources said this is the second fatal elephant attack reported in the Bitherkadu forest range within a month. On May 8, a tribal man, M Chemban from Murugambadi tribal settlement, was allegedly killed by an elephant near Ayyankolli. His 22-year-old son-in-law, Jisnu, who was with him, managed to escape.
On Wednesday morning, students who were friends of the victim, along with local residents, staged a road blockade protest at Mukkatti junction on the Tamil Nadu–Kerala road. They demanded Rs 50 lakh compensation and a job in the forest department for the boy’s father.
The protest, which began at 8.45 am, was called off around 12.45 pm after Superintendent of Police S Brinda assured that talks would be held at the RDO office on Saturday.
Gudalur RDO S K Gunasekaran, who held preliminary discussions with the protesters, said their demands also included a government house, as the family is currently living in rented accommodation.
“We will conduct a meeting in the presence of Nilgiris District Collector Lakshmi Bhavya Taneeru on Saturday with all department heads. The demands will be discussed and forwarded to the government,” he said.
Gudalur Divisional Forest Officer P. Devaraj said that more than 30 people would be deployed in conflict-prone areas along with forest staff to help mitigate human-animal conflict, especially as June to August is a critical migration period for elephants.
The victim, a Class VIII student at a private school, is survived by his father, Shajahan, who works at a supermarket in Dubai, his grandmother, and his 10-year-old younger brother.