Panic grips Bargarh as elephant herd invades village, destroys crops

A case of elephant herds crossing into human settlements and causing extensive damage to crops and harvest surfaced on Wednesday from Bargarh in western Odisha.

Reportedly, a herd of over 25 elephants crossed into the Padmapur subdivision of Bargarh and were spotted roaming around the Ghens range. The sightings terrified local residents as the tuskers closed in on nearby settlements.

ALSO READ: Elephant sightings in Dhenkanal and Bhubaneswar spark alarm

The herd reportedly caused extensive damage to farmland, with hundreds of hectares of crops reportedly being destroyed so far.

Preliminary reports suggested that the large had likely migrated from the Jhojha hills of adjoining Chattisgarh in search of fresh harvest. Notably, this is not the first such instance of jumbos invading the area. Padmapur has a history of elephants migrating close to human settlements and farms.

The alarming situation comes just a day after State Forest and Environment Minister Ganesh Ram Singh Khuntia informed the State Legislative Assembly that human-elephant conflicts in the state had risen to an all-time high.

According to the minister’s statements, 668 people lost their lives and over 509 were injured in multiple incidents across the state in the past three years alone. In the same address, he estimated that over 73,620 acres of crops and 10,259 houses were damaged in such human-elephant conflicts.

ALSO READ: Elephant calves rescued in Odisha find new home in Chandaka

At the time of filing of this report, both forest officials and locals were making efforts to drive the elephants away from the area.