One killed as wild elephants ravage agri fields Chittoor, Feb 1 (INN): One person is believed to have been trampled to death and 15 others injured when a herd of wild elephants ventured into villages on the border of the state with Karnataka in Chittoor district, destroying nearly 100 acres of sugarcane, paddy and vegetable crops. However, Kuppam Sub-Inspector Sai Prasad said that the news of the death of the man is yet to be verified.
The wild elephants, said to be about 40, had ventured into the agricultural fields from Karnataka early on Tuesday and were at present cooling off in the Lakshmipuram Lake in Kuppam mandal. According to Mr Sai Prasad, the wild elephants entered Chittoor district from the forests of Karnataka state and damaged crops and some houses in Togarapalli and Peddabajanawada in Gudipalli mandal in the district.
The police and forest officials are taking steps to chase the elephants back into the forest. Mr Sai Prasad did admit that the police have received word that one person, believed to be hailing from Karnataka was killed by the wild elephants. He did add that efforts are on to verify if the reports are indeed true and possibly identify the victim. The forest officials said the amount of crop damaged in the area was yet to be estimated. The elephants often enter villages due to shortage of food due to depleting forest cover.
News Posted: 1 February, 2011
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