Dhenkanal/Tensa: A male elephant calf drowned in a pond while a man was trampled to death in separate incidents in Dhenkanal and Sundargarh districts Thursday.
In the first incident, a six-month-old elephant calf drowned in Dhaurabani pond near Bampha forest section and Bedapada village under Hindol range in Dhenkanal district in the wee hours after it got stuck in the muck while drinking water along with other members of a herd.
The herd members tried to pull it out from the muck, but in vain. The herd later left the spot as the calf slipped deep inside the pond and ultimately drowned. Forest officials recovered the carcass after being informed by farmers going to their farmland. A post-mortem was conducted and the carcass was buried on the spot.
In the second incident, Roshan Lingi (46) of Kamand village under Koida forest range in Sundargarh district was trampled to death by a tusker which strayed into the village after getting separated from its herd. It started pulling down houses and destroying properties when people began to ran for their safety.
The tusker picked up Singi and trampled him to death. Later, the villagers managed to drive away the animal with the help of torches. Forest officials sent the body for post-mortem and assured the deceased family of compensation from government. PNN