One Palamu tiger reserve elephant trampled to death a 55-year old woman Radhika Devi in the protected forest of Maromar under Garu range of PTR.
The incident took place on Tuesday when this lady was out with her cows and goats in this jungle on for grazing. On Wednesday her body was found. She was trampled to death, said Garu ranger Ashok K Singh.
The Ranger said there were foot prints of elephant there and its dung too which left none in doubt about this casualty by the PTR elephant. Her hands and head were uncrushed and probably she got hurt by elephants in her ribs and that proved fatal.
Garu police took the body and sent in for autopsy in Latehar.
Radhika Devi was the wife of Rama Pd Yadav of Maromar village and she had a fleet of cows and goats and she used to take them out in the jungles every day for grazing.
The Ranger said her cows and goats returned home in the evening but she was missing.
Her family lost no time to understand that some mishap had occurred to her as she did not come home with cows and goats but as scouring jungles in PTR at night for a body is a highly hazardous task and so the family waited for Wednesday morning and the family had no surprise to see her lying dead on the grass.
This is the first trampling death by elephant this year in the South division of PTR said deputy director South M K Mahaling. He said this year elephant had injured a male villager whom PTR officials took utmost care and the man is now alive and kicking.
Deputy Director north division Anil Kumar Mishra said his north division so far this year has no case of trampling death by elephant.
Garu ranger said the deceased family has been given Rs 25,000 as ex gratia relief while Rs 3.75 lakh will be given later on after all formalities. It is Rs 4 Lakh now as compensation for death caused by elephant in Jharkhand.