NAGRAKATA ESCAPES FROM TUSKER ATTACK

By Supriyo Basak (TNI Dhupguri)

Webdesk, TNI Nagrakata 8^th May, 2016: A matured elephant ventured into human habitation and created chaos after broken an electric pole. The incident took place at the Nagrakata Khasbasti, Dooars. The said tusker lost its way into Nagrakata from the Daina Jungle on Saturday night. It devoured rice and wheat from some of the houses before walking into the streets of Khasbasti. Repeated thrusts to an electric pole resulted in its breakage. The wires snapped causing a short circuit. It panicked momentarily along with the local residents. Some electric devices and lights sustained damages in the nearby houses. Major mishap was averted on both accounts. Joy Kerketta, a local resident, complained of frequent visits by groups of tuskers in the recent past. Nothing has been effective in stopping these visits. The tuskers can’t be blamed either. There is no food in the jungles and they have to forage for food in the human habitations. This inadvertently results in vandalism and destruction. On this day, though there was no harm done to the human population, the electric cables sustained much damage. The electric supply was not restored even after formal complaints were lodged. Ms. S. Umarani (forest officer, Jalpaiguri Forest Division) claimed that there wasn’t much damage. In fact, the tusker itself escaped narrowly.

Edited By: Jonali Karmakar (TNI Siliguri)