Ganjam: A 55-year-old farmer was trampled to death by a tusker in the Gunduribadi area of the Mujagada range in the North Ghumusar reserve forest of Ganjam district on Thursday night.
The deceased has been identified as Tuna Gouda, a native of Bhanjanagar in Ganjam.
According to reports, a herd of 17 elephants invaded the village in search of food on Thursday evening and destroyed standing paddy crops. Many farmers along with the deceased had gone to their fields to protect their crops. Suddenly, a tusker from the herd attacked Gouda killing him on the spot.
As such man-animal conflicts are becoming frequent in the region; the Forest Department staff is at a loss on how to control the situation. The local authorities are also concerned over the loss of paddy crops due to elephant invasions.
