Chhattisgarh: Couple, minor son killed by wild elephants (Korba)
Chhattisgarh: Couple, minor son killed by wild elephants (Korba)
Outlook India
September 9, 2021
A couple and their four-year-old son were trampled to death by a herd of
wild elephants in Surguja district of Chhattisgarh, officials said on
Thursday.
The incident occurred on Wednesday evening when the victims, identified as
Gautam Das (30), his wife Reena Das (28) and son Yuvraj, natives of Kanni
village of the district, were returning home on a two-wheeler after some
work from nearby Udaipur town, a forest official said.
"They apparently failed to notice the herd of pachyderms standing by the
roadside near Mohanpur village in Udaipur forest range, as it was dark, and
before they could escape, one of the jumbos charged towards them and
attacked them with its trunk," he said.
After the trio fell from their vehicle, the elephants crushed them to
death, he added.
Soon after being alerted, forest personnel were rushed to the spot at night
and they chased away the herd from the spot. After that, the bodies of the
victims were sent for post-mortem, he said.
Surguja, a neighbouring district of Korba, is located around 300 km away
from capital Raipur.
An instant relief amount of Rs 25,000 has been given to the kin for each
deceased, while the remaining cumulative compensation of Rs 17.25 lakh will
be paid after the completion of necessary formalities, he said.
A herd of seven elephants has been spotted roaming in the area over the
last few days and locals have been alerted not to venture inside the forest
and travel during night, the official said.
Several incidents of human-elephant conflict have been reported in the past
from the thick forested northern Chhattisgarh, comprising Surguja,
Surajpur, Korba, Raigarh, Jashpur, Balrampur and Korea districts. The
region has witnessed several killings of villagers and widespread damage to
houses and crops by rogue elephants.
As per the government records, 204 people were killed in elephant attacks,
while 45 jumbos died in the state between 2018 and 2020.