Three individuals tragically lost their lives in Ramgarh’s Gola block in Jharkhand due to a wild elephant stampede on Friday morning. Among the victims were two brick kiln workers and an elderly villager. The first incident occurred in Banda village, where Dheeraj Bhuiyan and Jugal Bhuiyan were attacked by a herd of elephants while outside. Dheeraj hailed from Talatand in Patratu, and Jugal was from Kuju in Ramgarh.
In a separate incident in Murpa village, 80-year-old Ramdev Shaw was fatally attacked by elephants while collecting Mahua flowers early in the morning. The herd, consisting of approximately 12 elephants, entered residential areas of Ramgarh after migrating from the forests of Bokaro district. Forest Department officials and police responded to the scene upon notification, and the bodies have been sent for post-mortem examination.
Villagers expressed concerns over the Forest Department’s handling of the situation, with Banda Panchayat Mukhiya Kuldeep Tiwari alleging negligence by officials. Tiwari claimed that authorities had prior knowledge of the elephant movement but did not take adequate preventive measures to protect human settlements. Compensation of Rs 4 lakh will be given to each victim’s family, with immediate relief efforts already in progress. An initial sum of Rs 25,000 has been provided, and the remaining amount will be disbursed after administrative procedures are finalized.
The incident sheds light on the escalating human-elephant conflicts in Jharkhand. Recently, three individuals were killed in a similar elephant attack in Markacho, Koderma. Official records reveal that over the past 50 days, more than 28 people have lost their lives in elephant-related incidents throughout the state.
