Angul: Two women were trampled to death by an elephant at Badakantakula village in Bantala area of Odisha’s Angul district, a source said Monday.
The deceased were identified as Muli Pradhan and Gouri Roul from Badakantakula village.
According to the source, the duo had gone to a nearby mango orchard to collect fruits Monday morning. While they were busy collecting mangoes, the elephant attacked them. The elephant crushed Muli, which subsequently led to her death.
The second victim Gouri sustained critical injuries and was taken to Angul District Headquarters Hospital, where a doctor declared her dead, the source added.
Tension erupted in Bantala area following the death of the two women.
As per information available from Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, as many as 322 persons in Odisha lost their lives due to elephant attacks between 2019 and 2022. In the same time period, Odisha recorded the highest number of human casualties due to man-elephant conflicts in India.
PNN