Rourkela: A 60-year-old man was trampled to death by a wild elephant in Sundargarh district on Thursday night, triggering protests by villagers who blamed forest officials for the incident.
The deceased, identified as Bithol Naik from Bandal village, was returning home with another villager when they encountered a lone tusker in a bush around 7 pm. While his companion hid in a nearby nullah, Naik was caught and trampled to death by the elephant around 2 km from his residence.
Following the death, angry villagers staged a demonstration near the victim’s body, accusing the forest department of negligence. Officials from the Barsuan forest range, including range officer D D Sahu, arrived at the scene to pacify the protesters and drive the elephant back into the forest.
“We have successfully driven the tusker back to the forest and are maintaining surveillance on its movements,” said Sahu. He said the victim’s family would receive a compensation of Rs 6 lakh after completing necessary formalities, as per govt guidelines.
On Friday, Koida police registered a case and conducted post-mortem before handing over the body to the deceased’s family. Forest personnel maintained vigil throughout the night near the victim’s body.