JASHPUR: A 60-year-old man has been trampled to death by a herd of wild elephants in Jashpur district of Chhattisgarh, a forest official said on Sunday.
The incident took place on Saturday in Lamti forest under Narayanpur forest range where the victim, Kalyan Toppo, had gone to graze his cattle, he said.
Toppo, hailing from nearby Ranikombo village, came face-to-face with a herd of elephants.
When he tried to escape, the jumbos slammed him on the ground with their trunks, he said, adding that the victim died on the spot.
Police and forest officials later retrieved the body, he said.
The victim's family was given an immediate aid of Rs 25,000, and the remaining compensation of Rs 5.75 lakh will be given upon completion of formalities, the official said.
A herd of elephants has been roaming in the area and destroyed standing crops in Charaimara village in the last few days, he said, adding that villagers have been alerted.
Several incidents of human-elephant conflict have been reported in the past from the thick forested northern Chhattisgarh, consisting of Surguja, Surajpur, Korba, Raigarh, Jashpur, Balrampur and Koriya districts.
The region has witnessed killings of a number of villagers and widespread damage to houses and crops by rogue elephants.