A labourer died while two others sustained critical injuries after an elephant attacked them while they sleeping inside a kendu leaves fadi at Gadumunda village under Rairakhol Wildlife Division in Sambalpur district on Saturday evening.
Fadi a house where kendu leaves are collected, stored and Processing, Binding and Bagging (PBB) activities are done.
The deceased has been identified as Bimbadhar Mahakud. The other two- Binayak Dehury and Pabitra Dehury who were injured in the attack were initially taken to Rairakhol hospital and later shifted to Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (VIMSAR) in Burla after their health condition deteriorated.
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As many as six labourers were engaged in work in the fadi at Gadumunda village, said reports.
While the six people were sleeping inside the fadi after having dinner, an elephant barged into the house and attacked them leading to the death of Bimbadhar on the spot and fracturing both legs of Binayak and Pabitra critically.
The three other labourers who were present at the fadi managed to escape, added reports.
Later, tension ran high in the village as locals protested the forest team for reaching the spot after two hours of receiving the information. However, the forest officials managed to pacify the mob and sent the body of post-mortem.
At least three persons have been trampled to death in the last one and a half month in the region.
(Edited By Rashmi Ranjan Mohanty)