An elderly woman in West Midnapore district was killed by elephants on Wednesday morning, officials said, making her the sixth victim in such attacks in the state since October 27.
Laxmi Ahir (60) went to the forest in Metala of Goaltore area of West Midnapore district about 170 km West of Kolkata early in the morning to collect mushroom when she was attacked by a pachyderm.
“There are about 20 elephants in the area. These animals have come from Pirakata area that is about 17-18 km away. There was dense fog in the morning and the woman could not see the elephant herd,” said Sandip Berawal, divisional forest officer in Midnapore.
Ahir was trampled by the animals and then her body was kicked around, said an official of Nayabasat range. “The family of the woman will get a compensation of Rs 2 lakh from the government,” the official said.
Four people, including a couple, were killed by elephants in three different incidents in north Bengal between Sunday and Tuesday. While one person was killed in Darjeeling district, three others were killed in Maynaguri area of Jalpaiguri district, triggering an agitation by villagers who locked the office of a range wildlife squad on Tuesday.
On Sunday afternoon, in the Hasimara area of Jaldapara an elephant handler was killed in the attack of a pet elephant of the forest department. He died in a hospital on Monday.
On an average, about 50 people are killed every year in Bengal in elephant attacks, said a forest officer on conditions of anonymity.
Officers also said that there are currently more than 150 wild elephants in parts of western districts of Bengal such as Jhargram, West Midnapore and Bankura. They have migrated to the area from Dalma range of hills in neighbouring Jharkhand.
Though earlier only 30 to 40 elephants used to come and stayed for three-four months, the animals are coming in larger numbers and are staying for 9-10 months .
“The pressure on the forest is increasing. In many places, elephant corridors are being encroached upon leading to man-animal conflict,” said the forest officer.
