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Sundergarh: This jumbo ain't a gentle giant. It is a highway robber! Sounds strange, but its exploits are playing out in a dense forest area of Tensa ghats on National Highway No 5 day in and day out.
At a time when reports of elephant menace are often hitting headlines in the State, this unusual but friendly behaviour of the jumbo has taken people by surprise, reinforcing the fervent elephant-human friendship.
Trucks and other vehicles travelling on the Barasuan road are often its target. The jumbo would stop them, thrust his trunk into the driver's cabin (as if asking for food) and leave only after food articles are stuffed into its long winding muscle.
Once the demand is met with, the giant would quietly melt into the nearby forest without causing any harm to anybody, vehicles or humans. Such behaviour of the pachyderm has amused people with some believing that it might have been a pet released by its owner into the wild.
The elephant has been appearing regularly on the road for quite some time now. Locals say it means no harm to anyone. "Once the jumbo takes its share it disappears into the thick vegetation," said a local who has encountered the elephant on several occasions.
"The jumbo never blocks vehicles on the road for hours. It keeps scanning vehicles for food. Once getting a trunk-load it silently walks into the forest," said another local.
Experts say that rampant felling of trees and the unabated human encroachment of forests areas are forcing animals, especially elephants, to stray into human habitat in search of food. However, the irony is that they are often treated like intruders without understanding the fact they are moving towards villages and turning to farmlands because of loss of their habitat, said a wildlife conservationist.
Elephants are known to develop strong and intimate bonds with humans if they are treated with care and sensitivity. "They are adorable and form lifelong friendship," said an animal lover.
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