Fear gripped residents of Katkamsandi and Katkamdag blocks in Hazaribag district after a herd of three adult elephants went on a rampage in the human habitats on Saturday night. The jumbos damaged houses and destroyed crops in Sultana, Pagar and Sulmi villages.
In the evening some villagers spotted the elephants, possibly separated from their herd, in the vicinity of the village and raised alarm. The tuskers destroyed houses of Rehmat Miyan, Murtaza Anchai Devi, Koka Mehto of Sultana and Gurucharan Mehto, Ramu Mehto of Pagar and Amrit Ram of Sulmi. The panic-struck villagers had to spend the night awake in hideouts. A team of forest officials came to the villages for inspection on Sunday morning and to stay indoors.
The team has assured villagers that it will take up the matter with the higher authorities and ensure compensation for the villagers who have incurred losses. The elephants, they said, have also broken the walls of a graveyard in one of the villages.Villagers say that a group of at least 18 elephants are roaming free in the area and posing threat to the villagers.