Elephants raze 15 houses, villagers terrified

The terror of wild elephants in Sarguja division is continuing with the forest department unable to control the situation. As per reports from Forest circle of Baikuntpur and Khadganwa, in few forest villages around 15 houses have been razed by the herds of elephants. This has created a sense of terror among the villagers as they are keeping night vigil.

According to information shared by local resident Yashwant Rajwade from Koriya district, under Koriya Forest Division, movement of two herds of elephants were spotted in the forest area. As per estimates around 11 elephants were in each herd. The villagers tracking the elephants stated that the movement of wild elephants were from Sarguja division’s Balrampur and Surajpur district to Koriya district’s Guru Ghasidas National Sanctuary area. After spending few months, the herd now has moved in to Koriya forest division’s limits of Sonhat, Devgarh to Sakla,Salba villages. Countering it, the forest department officials said that herd has only nine wild elephants while the second herd has only six elephants. These had moved to Korba Forest Division.

Under Khadganwa forest circle in villages of Banjari Dhand and Maati Jhariya within two days around 15 houses have been damaged. The herd had consumed the foodgrains stored in the houses. Now, the villagers are spending sleepless night in the area. 

On one side the forest department is trying to stop the elephants from entering the residential area, but on the other side the frequent damages indicate towards the failure on part of forest department to minimise the damage of property and life.

It has also been found that forest department has warned the villagers not to be close to the elephant herds but the villagers have been regularly found to be violating the instructions, making the elephants more aggressive and violent. The forest department staff have failed to control the movement of villagers towards the herds, as of now villagers, also do not have fear to approach towards the elephants.

As per reports, earlier also the herds of elephant were also spotted in Banjaridandh, Maatijhariya, Salka, Salba, Sarai Gehna, Pote-Dhand villages under Baikuntpur and Khadganwa forest circles.

Akhilesh Mishra, DFO, Baikuntpur Koriya said that the two herds of elephant have been spotted moving in the forest division of Koriya mainly in Baikuntpur and Khadganwa forest circle. One herd has nine while the other herd is of six elephants. The elephants having arrived from Korba district have razed 15 hutments, while the forest department teams has been continuously asking the villagers to keep away from the herds. But even then the villagers are reaching near the herds but no loss of life has been reported.