Cuttack/ Keonjhar/ Sundargarh: Over the years, humans have taken over vast tracts of wildlife habitats in Odisha leading to rising incidents of man-animal conflict that often prove fatal for both animals and humans. Besides, crop loss is also quite common in these conflicts.
With Kharif season going on in Odisha, the wild elephants are frequently moving towards the human settlement and destroying standing paddy crops of farmers at various places in the state. The elephant herds often damage agricultural lands, houses and eat up stocked paddy. These incidents are quite common in Cuttack, Kenojhar and Sundargarh districts.
Cuttack: In Cuttack district’s Tangi area two elephants from Kaliamba forest in Dlaijoda reportedly damaged the house of Rukmini Sardar in Badapokhari village. The jumbos destroyed rice sacks after breaking the wall of Sardar’s house.
“The elephants damaged my house and ate away my rice and paddy which I had stocked for the year. Now I have no clue how to survive the rest of the year,” lamented Sardar.
When asked Safa Range forester Chandra Sekhar Das said, “The department is aware of the matter. After assessing Sardar’s loss caused by elephants we will provide compensation to her”.
Keonjhar: Elephant menace returned to haunt villagers in the beat area of Patna forest range in Keonjhar district after a herd of 22 elephants from Karanjia forest range went on a rampage and destroyed crops, locals said.
The paddy crop damaged by the elephants comes after Cyclone Amphan ravaged the farmland last year. The Forest department, meanwhile, has been accused of failing to keep the animals at bay. This has led to discontent among the locals.
The farmers said that Cyclone Amphan extensively damaged their crops, and on top of that elephants damaged whatever was left.
For the last two days animals have been damaging crops at villages like Binida, Balipasi and Mangalpur, and farmers are spending sleepless nights trying to drive them away. The farmers fear that if the elephant menace is not checked they will have to give up farming.
According to the forest officials, the elephants had made their way from Karangia forest range to Patna forest range in search of food. The forest officials now are now taking steps to drive the elephants away from the local settlements.
The forest officials assured the villagers for compensation for the damage caused.
Frequent intrusions by the elephants to the farmlands have robbed the farmers of their sleep. Crops in large tracts of farmlands were destroyed by the elephants in these three villages. This situation has led to widespread panic among the villagers.
Sundargarh: Like the above two districts, the pachyderms have caused severe damages in villages such as Koida, Jarada and Barsuan areas of Sundargarh. Elephants reportedly ate up rice after damaging two houses in Dengula panchayat and also destroyed acres of agricultural land in Kindro village under Jarada panchayat.
On the other hand, the forest department said they are trying to drive out elephants. Barsuan forester Nabin Pradhan assured the farmers to compensate their loss.
PNN