Kaptipada: Elephant menace has returned to Katuria village under Labanyadei panchayat at Kaptipada block of Mayurbhanj district after an elephant from Simlipal went on a rampage and destroyed crops late Friday night, locals said.
The pachyderms had damaged paddy after Cyclone Bulbul ravaged the farmland. The Forest Department meanwhile has been accused of failing to drive away the animals. This has led to discontent among the locals.
The farmers said that Cyclone Bulbul extensively damaged their crops, and elephants damaged whatever was left.
For the last two days animals have been damaging crops, and farmers are spending sleepless nights trying to drive them away. The farmers fear that if the elephant menace was not checked they will have to give up farming.
The forest officials provided compensation to the farmers for the damage caused. The frequent visits of the pachyderms to farmlands have robbed the farmers of their sleep. Crops in large tracts of farmlands were destroyed by the elephants in Katuria. This situation has led to panic among the villagers.
PNN