Angul: A 52-year-old man was killed in a tusker attack in a forested area of Angul on Monday, while his wife narrowly escaped, officials said.
The deceased has been identified as Bhuban Pradhan of Gadeimunda village under Purunakot police limits in the Pokunda forest section. According to reports, Bhuban and his wife Paluni Pradhan had ventured into the nearby reserve forest to collect honey when the incident occurred.
While searching for honey inside the forest, Bhuban reportedly came face-to-face with a wild tusker. The elephant attacked him, lifting him with its trunk and hurling him to the ground. Paluni, who was at some distance, witnessed the attack and rushed back to the village to alert locals.
Villagers, along with forest department personnel, reached the spot and rescued the critically injured Bhuban. He was immediately shifted to the district headquarters hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead.
Following the incident, forest ranger Abhimanyu Majhi and other officials visited the hospital. The family later lodged a complaint at the police station, after which police registered an unnatural death case and conducted a post-mortem.
Forest officials said the bereaved family will be provided compensation of ₹10 lakh as per government norms.
The latest incident adds to a series of fatal human-elephant conflicts in the Angul forest region. On March 6, Narottam Matiari of Hinsaloi village was killed in a similar attack, followed by the death of Bijay Pradhan of Manijodi village on March 19.
Earlier this month, on April 9, Pankajini Pradhan and her daughter Pushpa Pradhan also lost their lives in separate elephant attacks.
With repeated fatalities being reported, residents in forest fringe areas of Angul district continue to live in fear amid increasing elephant movement.
