In an incident that is sure to echo in the sal-covered forests of Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve for generations, three wild elephants trampled three men, killing two, on Saturday morning, barely four kilometres from Salakhaniya, where ten elephants have died in less than a week.
Attribute it to Bollywood or a local penchant for folklore, but many in the area are absolutely convinced that the elephant attack is an act of revenge.
Forest officials have neither confirmed nor denied that the attacking wild mammals belonged to the herd of thirteen, of which ten have perished this week.
They said that the remaining three from the herd are believed to have made their way into the neighbouring Katni district, and efforts are underway to track their movement. Forest officials camping in the area since the outbreak of the elephantine tragedy have ordered the destruction of the Kodo millet harvest and crops in the area.
The little-known grain has emerged as the flashpoint of the controversy, as officials believe that grazing on contaminated Kodo has led to the loss of pachyderm lives.
Contradicting research suggesting that Kodo crops harvested in damp conditions are deadly for human and animal health, indigenous tribals who have grown the grain for generations say that they have never encountered any such issue with the crop.
The order for the destruction of 'contaminated' Kodo is causing heartburn among the marginal farmers that dot the area, especially as there is no official word on how they would be compensated for their loss of earnings.
Kodo has been widely grown in the region for decades, if not centuries, but the little-known millet came into the limelight last year when the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the United Nations declared 2023 as the International Year of Millets.
The crop is now added to multigrain atta preferred by the health-conscious, and the state government has incentivised its production by offering an MSP on the yield.
People in the area concede that fungus-infested Kodo does cause intoxication but refute claims and research suggesting that the tiny grain is detrimental to human or animal health.
With the controversy gaining mammoth proportions, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav convened top forest administration officials at his residence late on Friday evening.
A brief released to the media stated that Chief Minister Yadav has dispatched a high-level team, including MoS for Faorets Dilip Ahirwar, to Bandhavgarh to supervise investigations and present their report in 24 hours.
