Pabitranagar: A cowherd was killed in an elephant attack on the outskirts of Badibahal village under Talcher forest range in Angul district Sunday.
The deceased was identified as Gopabandhu Behera (45). He was grazing his herd of cattle near the village when the elephant, a tusker, strayed into the area from a nearby forest and attacked him. He died on the spot.
The incident triggered panic among the people of the area. A group of people from nearby villages rushed to the spot and staged an agitation demanding compensation for the bereaved family and protection from the wrath of the killer elephant which is on a rampage in the area.
Talcher forest ranger Trilochan Behera and Samal IIC Geetanjali Sahu rushed to the spot and tried to placate the agitating villagers. They relented after Behera gave an ex-gratia of Rs 30,000 to the kin of the deceased and assured further compensation of Rs 4 lakh after completion of necessary formalities.
The police sent the body for post-mortem and registered a case.
According to villagers, the tusker has claimed three lives in Khamar area last month and attacked a person, leaving him seriously injured, in Parachhata under Khamar police limits Saturday night. PNN
