SAMBALPUR/ROURKELA: Three persons were killed in separate incidents of elephant attack in Sambalpur and Rourkela city of Sundargarh district in the last 24 hours.
In Sambalpur, two persons including an elderly man were trampled to death by a herd of around 10 elephants in Kutab village under Ushakothi wildlife sanctuary late on Monday night. The deceased were identified as Gangaram Patel (62) of Kutab and Pradeep Ghatual (45) of Jujumura.
Forest officials said the duo had gone to their paddy fields to protect their crops from the herd of wild elephants which had entered the area. While trying to drive the elephants away, they reportedly ventured too close and were attacked. They sustained fatal injuries and died on the spot. Their bodies were later recovered by villagers.
On Tuesday morning, villagers staged protest with the bodies, demanding a permanent solution to the recurring human-elephant conflict and the creation of a designated corridor for elephant movement within the sanctuary.
Bamra DFO Bikram Dev Pattanaik said there are 27 villages within Ushakothi sanctuary limits and residents have been repeatedly cautioned against approaching elephant herds. “Our staff were deployed to drive the elephants away, but the victims tried to protect their crops on their own and were attacked,” he said.
The DFO informed that an ex-gratia of `10 lakh each will be provided to the victims’ families. Badrama range officer Giridhari Pradhan said the agitating villagers were pacified and assured of necessary steps to prevent such incidents in future.
Similarly in Sundargarh, a 79-year-old woman was killed by a tusker in Koel Nagar under Rourkela Municipal Corporation (RMC) in the early hours of Tuesday. The deceased was identified as Purnima Dastia of Koel Nagar.
Notably, this is the first human fatality in an elephant attack within the RMC area, though intrusions by pachyderms into Rourkela city and its outskirts have been reported several times.
Sources said the lone tusker got separated from its herd near Barkani village under Bondamunda police limits on Monday night. At around 1 am, it was spotted on Bondamunda main road near Kendriya Vidyalaya. Subsequently, the authorities of Rourkela forest division (RFD) were alerted.
The tusker then walked along the foothills of Durgapur reserve forest, and reached the rear entrance of NIT-Rourkela. From there, it passed through the residential area of Jagda and entered C Block of Koel Nagar. Between 3 am and 3.30 am, the elephant attacked Purnima near her house, lifting her with its trunk and fatally thrashing her.
Rourkela DFO Jasabanta Sethi said the woman was plucking flowers when she was attacked by the tusker. “The elephant was later guided across Koel river and into Kacharu forest in Kuanrmunda block,” he said. With the harvesting season approaching, around 80 elephants in multiple herds are currently moving in forests under the RFD’s jurisdiction in Sundargarh district, the DFO added.