Alipurduar/ Cooch Behar/ Jalpaiguri: Five wild elephants roamed freely in broad daylight, wreaking havoc in a crop field. This alarming incident occurred on Thursday morning in the locality within the Ghoksadanga police station area of the Mathabhanga-II block in Cooch Behar district.
The elephants were first spotted at Banik Para in the morning, causing panic among the local residents. They proceeded to vandalise the crop fields in the Satisherhat area and took shelter there.
Upon receiving information, personnel from Mathabhanga Forest department and Ghoksadanga Police Station swiftly arrived at the scene. Police made arrangements to prevent anyone from entering the area.
Sajal Pal, the ranger of the Mathabhanga Range, said: “The elephants have moved to the locality from Jaldapara Forest. They are already in the middle of the paddy fields. After evening, the elephants will be driven to the forest.” However, due to the entry of the elephants into the locality, the paddy fields of the local farmers have been destroyed, according to the locals.
Meanwhile, on Thursday morning, a herd of 40 elephants entered the Grasmor Tea Garden of Dooars to eat rice from the paddy fields on their way to the Bhutanese forest. Many people had gathered there since dawn to witness the scene. Locals and tourists visiting Dooars also captured the elephants on their mobile phones from a distance.
In a separate incident, a person died after being attacked by three elephants in North Khairbari of the Madarihat block in Alipurduar district. This incident has caused a significant stir in the area. Kancha Rai, a resident of the area, left his home to go to work on Thursday morning. At that time, three wild elephants were roaming in the village. Suddenly, Kancha Rai came across these elephants and they attacked him, twisting and trampling him. Later, locals rescued him and brought him to Madarihat Hospital, where he unfortunately succumbed to his injuries. The Madarihat police recovered the body.