Hazaribagh: After six people, including four members of a family and two toddlers, were trampled to death by a herd of wild elephants, the district administration has imposed prohibitory orders in the area amid fears of further unrest and renewed human-elephant conflict.Divisional forest officer (east division) Vikas Kumar Ujjwal said the herd had been moving along the Bokaro-Ramgarh border, and its entry into Hazaribag was not anticipated. “The elephants reached Gondwar near the Ango village late at night and entered a house in search of food grain. Assistance as per govt provisions has been extended to the victims, he said, adding that forest teams from Daru and Charhi ranges reached the spot at night and intensified patrolling.
Following the incident, large crowds gathered in Gondwar and adjoining areas, raising concerns over law and order as well as the possibility of renewed confrontation with the herd.In a press release, the district public relations office said that in view of the grave human-elephant conflict and on the recommendation of the divisional forest officer (Hazaribag east division) and directives from the Jharkhand govt, prohibitory orders were imposed in the Churchu area.Sadar sub-divisional officer Aditya Pandey invoked Section 163 of the BNSS to enforce the restrictions from February 13 until further orders, to ensure public safety and maintain law and order.Panedy, however, said the order would not apply to deputed magistrates, police officials, armed forces personnel and lathi-force engaged in duty. Funeral processions, marriages and other essential social functions were also exempted. The administration appealed to the residents not to assemble unnecessarily and to cooperate with the authorities to prevent further loss of life.Hazaribag MP Manish Jaiswal of BJP visited the village and met members of the bereaved families. Expressing anguish over the deaths, Jaiswal alleged that the increasing elephant aggression was linked to large-scale human intrusion and illegal mining in forest areas. “Blasting in illegal mines and unchecked movement of heavy vehicles through traditional elephant corridors are disturbing their natural habitat. Unless illegal mining is curbed and forest zones are secured, such tragedies will continue,” he said.He has sought immediate relief and long-term preventive measures from the govt. As an interim assistance, Rs 25,000 was sanctioned for each deceased to their kin, with officials assuring that the remaining compensation under the govt norms would be paid within a month.Sadar SDM Aditya Pandey said that while the loss could not be fully compensated, the administration would ensure that affected families received the monetary assistance at the earliest. He added that concrete steps were being taken in coordination with the forest department to prevent such a recurrence and that awareness and training programmes would be launched in vulnerable villages.Police sent the bodies for post-mortem, and forest teams tracked the herd’s movement as fear gripped villages across Churchu and adjoining areas.Villagers said they beat drums and utensils, and flashed torchlights in a desperate attempt to drive the herd away, but the elephants remained in the settlement for a long time before retreating to the forest. They said the elephants are loitering in the forest just 3 km away from the village.Dumri MLA Jairam Mahto also visited the affected villagers on Friday and described the killing as very painful. He offered his condolences to the bereaved family members and said he would take all necessary measures and asked the govt to rebuild their houses, which were damaged by the jumbos. Mahto said he would raise the issue in the Jharkhand assembly so that the affected families receive suitable compensation and justice. He will also raise the matter about the man-animal conflict in the assembly.
