Elephant tramples two to death. Man-animal conflicts ring safety alarm

A wild elephant trampled two men to death in Kalahandi district in the latest instance of man-animal conflict in the state.

The incident took place on Monday afternoon in the far-flung forest-side village of Thutikela under the Narla forest range limits. Forest and police personnel came to know about the incident on Tuesday.

The victims, Metha Majhi, 60, and Pitmabar Majhi, 55, were returning home from a fair at a nearby village when the tusker is said to have appeared from nowhere and trampled them to death, said a forest official.

The animal also picked them up with its trunk and flung them to the ground. The duo suffered serious head injuries and bled to death on the spot, the official said.

The spot, where the incident took place, is close to the elephants' habitation corridor. The animals frequently stray into agricultural fields nearby to feed on crops, and this leads to man-elephant conflicts, said Narla forest range officer Antarjami Das.

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