A herd of about 12 elephants is on rampage in different villages of Barkattha and Chalkusha blocks for last two days. On Monday night, the jumbos killed Meghni Devi, wife of late Nehal Mahto, of village Jhingitand of Chalkusha block, while on Tuesday, a five year kid of Kendua village of Barkattha block was brutally killed by the jumbos.
After a gap of about 6-7 months the herd of jumbos has entered in Hazaribagh district and has sparked creating panic among the villagers. On Tuesday, the herd was in Sudang forest of Barkattha block when the villagers started making noise and using crackers to move them away from the village but it provoked the elephants.
Angry herd chased the villagers and entered into the village. A kid who was with the villagers left behind during this chase and the jumbos brutally crushed him under their feet. In the village the herd destroyed the building of primary school and ate all the food grains stored there for midday meal.
On Monday night in Jhingitand village which is also adjacent to Sudang forest the same herd has killed an old lady Meghni Devi. She had gone out of her house for toilet in about midnight when the herd took her in target and killed her in similar fashion as they have killed the kid. In that village too the herd destroyed many mud houses and ate the stored food grains of the poor villagers.
Since last two days the herd has also damaged standing crops of maize and madua in large areas. They have also destroyed the house of Tejan Singh of Chandantungi village. After getting the information SDO BP Krishna, BDO Manoj Kumar, OIC Rampati Yadav and staffs of forest department have visited the villages and assured the villagers that they will take every step to remove the herd from this area.
Meanwhile the general secretary of JDU Bateshwar Prasad Mehta today met DC Sunil Kumar and demanded compensation for the deceased families and to those who have lost their houses and crops due to jumbos’ rampage. He has reminded that last time the district administration has given assurances to the jumbo victims but yet those assurances have not been fulfilled.