Basta: A herd of wild elephants have been wreaking havoc at around five villages under Basta block in Balasore district for the last eight days.
The jumbo herd that had entered Purushottampur village Monday is on a rampage by battering a cow to death and damaging houses there are giving the local sleepless nights. Many villages in the area are donning a deserted look after sunset, reports said.
According to reports, at least 32 elephants of West Bengal and Jharkhand have ventured in the area after straying into Kanpur forest under Rasagobindapur block in Mayurbhanj district. Purushottampur panchayat is situated along the border of Mayurbhanj and Balasore districts.
The wild pachyderms have already destroyed hundreds of acres of agricultural land.
The jumbo herd has caused extensive damage at Purushottampur, Bagaldiha, Nuagaon, Sarisha of this panchayat and Chasipada and Hadamauda villages of Natakata panchayat, reports said.
The large mammals allegedly damaged the house of one Rabi Dalai of Purushottampur village. They also uprooted banana, coconut and palm trees with their trunks. A cattle calf which had been kept inside a shed was also killed in the elephant menace.
The disconnection of power supply in the elephant corridors has added to the woes of the villagers who are spending nights in darkness.
Four teams comprising of 45 personnel of the forest department are being engaged to drive away the wild animals from human settlements. While the elephants are venturing in Kanpur jungle in the morning, they are sneaking into human habitation in the night in search of food, said one of the forest officials.
The forest personnel are using fire torches and crackers to ward off the jumbo herd, it was learnt. However, the jumbo herd has posed a big threat to the crops which are yet to be harvested.
PNN
