Keonjhar: An elderly man was killed in an elephant attack in Kushkala village of Bashanpal block in Odisha’s Keonjhar district while he was guarding his field late on Sunday night. The deceased has been identified as Maheshwar Mahanth (68).
According to reports, people in the area are in a state of panic as a herd of 32 elephants is still roaming near the village.
As many as 32 elephants are roaming in Kushkala, Adal, Kalanda and other areas destroying houses and paddy crop. In order to save the paddy crop from the elephant herd, villagers are guarding their fields at night and banging drums and vessels to drive the pachyderms away.
Late last night, a lone female elephant ravaged through the paddy field of Maheswar. Seeing the elephant destroying his crop, Maheswar rushed in to drive the pachyderm away. However, the elephant attacked Maheswar killing him on the spot.
On receiving the news, a Forest Department team reached the spot, recovered the dead body and sent it for autopsy. While the Forest Department is trying to drive away the elephants, resentment prevails among the villagers who demanded that the government provide financial assistance to the kin of the deceased.
