One trampled to death by wild elephant in Morang

Sundarharaincha (Morang), Jan 19: Hari Prasad Ghimire,71, of Sundarharaincha Municipality-8 has died after being attacked by a wild elephant. He was attacked by an elephant when he tried to escape from his house last Thursday night, according to the District Police Office.

The mother elephant had come to the village with her calf, creating havoc and terror among the local residents. 

Ward Chair Khem Neupane said that there are more than a dozen wild elephants in the community forest north of the Municipality and they have been terrorizing the locals all night. 

Three weeks ago, Chandra Kumari Limbu, 61, of Gurung Tole, Sundarharaincha-5, died after being attacked by a wild elephant while returning home after collecting firewood in the forest. Also, Ganga Shrestha, 40, died after being attacked by an elephant while she was going to search for firewood in Srijana Community Forest, Sundarharaincha-7, a month ago. 

According to the Morang Division Forest Office, wild elephants have been attacking people, destroying crops and demolishing houses in districts such as Jhapa, Morang and Sunsari in Koshi Province.

In Morang, as of late, herds of elephants have been seen almost daily in Belbari, Sundarharaincha and Kerabari. 

Meanwhile, two wild elephants have been found dead in Morang in a year. One wild elephant was shot dead here last year.

A report showed that in Jhapa district, at least 56 people died in wild elephant attacks in a period of 10 years.