Efforts fail to shoo away jumbos

It’s a jumbo-size problem for Balasore’s Nilagiri region. The elephants remain unmoved even as over 170 forest and police personnel are working overtime to chase them away.

 Sources said elephants have destroyed over 25 houses on Friday night.

 In the last one week, 103 houses in seven villages have been damaged and paddy crop in an area of over 100 acres ravaged by elephants. The worst affected have been Hatimunda, Siadimal, Kunchibania, Dangarsahi and Naranpur villages.

Agitated over the inability of forest officials in chasing away the animals, irate villagers assaulted a few forest officials and damaged a vehicle used in patrolling on Friday. Police have registered a case.

 Meanwhile forest officials have extended ‘Operation Gajendra’ by two days to drive away the elephants. They said elephants that had moved towards Ayodhya forest on their return path towards Mayurbhanj district were prevented from entering Tinikosia forest again.

DFO Kedar Swain said elephants turned violent as villagers irritated them by  various means. The herd of over 100 elephants from Dalma sanctuary of neighbouring Jharkhand sneaked into the district after wreaking havoc in Mayurbhanj. The district administration has evacuated 1,200 persons from seven villages and they have been sheltered in schools and temporary camps. Collector Ranjit Kumar Mohanty has ordered food for a week for the displaced.