Bhubaneswar: In a shocking incident, a forest official lost his life after being trampled by an elephant at Jharabeda village under Sadar Range in Keonjhar district Wednesday late at night.
The deceased has been identified as Basant Mahant, a member of the Elephant Squad.
On Wednesday night, a team of forest officials and Elephant Squad members arrived at Jharabeda village to drive away a herd of seven elephants that had been damaging crops. Amidst the operation, a lone tusker separated from the herd and attacked the team.
While others managed to escape, Basant was trampled by the elephant and succumbed to his injuries on the spot.
Upon being informed, senior officials rushed to the scene, and the body was sent for post-mortem.
It is pertinent to mention that Basant had been working as an Elephant Squad member for a long time, and his sudden demise has left his family and colleagues in shock.
