Agartala, April 8: In yet another heart-wrenching incident highlighting the ongoing man-animal conflict in Tripura, an octogenarian fell victim to a wild elephant attack on Sunday evening.
The tragic event unfolded in Maharanipur, within the jurisdiction of the Teliamura police station in Khowai district, an area plagued by repeated elephant encounters over the years.
The deceased, identified as Nirudh Chowdhury (85), succumbed to injuries sustained during the wild elephant assault.
According to Ranjan Chowdhury, the grieving son of the deceased, his father was attacked around 6:30 PM while returning home from a local temple.
Recounting the harrowing ordeal, he stated, “He was 85. The incident happened at Maharanipur Kamalatilla area of Teliamura in Khowai district. It happened around 6:30 PM last evening. He went to my residence, where he had taken dinner. He then went to the local temple and on his way back to his ancestral home, he faced his fate.”
Adding to the tragedy, Ranjan revealed that his father’s residence had been destroyed months earlier in another wild elephant rampage.
Expressing frustration with the authorities, he lamented, “I called forest officials today but there is no response even two hours later. It was the same earlier. Tribal affairs minister Bikash Debbarma was elected from here. He assured before the assembly elections that he would resolve elephant attacks if he was elected. It’s been two years since he won the elections but nothing has been done.”
The news of the incident has instilled fear among locals, exacerbating tensions in the area.
Many residents attribute the tragedy to the negligence of forest department officials.
Forest officials, police, and even journalists encountered resistance and obstacles from locals when they arrived at the scene to investigate and cover the incident.
Meanwhile today Chandni Chandra, the District Magistrate of Khowai district has orders the District Forest Officer to tranquilize the said elephant ‘Moti’ within 72 hours of the issuance of this order and rehabilitate it to the elephant camp in Mungiakami or anyother place he may find appropriate.
Elephant attacks have become distressingly common in the region, resulting in loss of life and property.
According to reports, there have been 26-27 such attacks in the past year alone.
Earlier this year, in January, a herd of wild elephants wreaked havoc by demolishing several mudhouses in sudden assaults in the same locality leading to huge protests and national highway blockade.
Notably, on January 20, just a day after Tripura Forest Minister Bikash Debbarma had pledged measures to mitigate human-animal conflicts in Khowai district, another wild elephant attack occurred at Chakmaghat, damaging homes and belongings.
A report from the state Forest Department, a few years ago, indicated Tripura’s elephant population to be 102, comprising 42 wild elephants and 60 in captivity. However, efforts to finalize updated survey reports have been inconclusive.
