Jumbo tramples farmer to death (Erode) Times of India March 13, 2024 A 65-year-old man was trampled to death by a wild elephant near Thalavadi in the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR) here on Tuesday while guarding the crops he cultivated on his farmland. A forest officer identified the deceased as K Makkaiya, of Thiginarai. “A farmer, he had cultivated bananas on two acres and maize on another two acres. He was in the habit of guarding his standing crops to protect them from wild animals. Around 3am on Tuesday, a wild elephant strayed out of the STR and trampled him to death.” Villagers alerted the Thalavadi forest officers, who sent the body to the nearby government hospital for a postmortem. Meanwhile, the villagers gathered at the bus stop and staged a demonstration. They blamed the forest officers for not setting up elephant proof trenches along the forest boundaries. “In the absence of trenches, elephants are easily entering the plains,” they said. Thalavadi forest officers have registered a case and further inquiry is on. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/coimbatore/jumbo-tramples-farmer-to-death-near-thalavadi-in-sathyamangalam-tiger-reserve/articleshow/108447481.cms