Assam: Widespread human-elephant conflict leaves Dimakuchi in turmoil

A CORRESPONDENT

ORANG: A severe escalation of human-elephant conflict has thrown several villages along the India-Bhutan border in Udalguri district into deep distress, with residents enduring sleepless nights as herds of wild elephants move through the region in search of food. Within the past week, nearly a hundred families have suffered damages to their homes, boundary structures, and agricultural fields, themselves barely managing to escape with their lives.

Bamunjuli, Dimakuchi, Paneri, Borongajuli, Kochubil, Nalapara, Kalikhola, Tengkibasti, Dharamjuli, Teliapara, Bagrital, Rajagarh, Bhutiachang, Nonoi Para, Aurangajuli, Atarikhat, Badlapara, Sonajuli, Gitibari, and several other border areas have been witnessing relentless elephant intrusion. Residents report that nights have become synonymous with panic and vigilance as herds frequently raid villages, damaging property and consuming stored food grains.

In several incidents reported within a single night, four houses belonging to Bhabesh Deka of No. 2 North Dimakuchi were reduced to rubble while his stored grain was destroyed. Similar losses were recorded at the homes of Amal Das of No. 1 North Dimakuchi and Sukumar Mandal of No. 3 North Dimakuchi. Village institutions including schools and religious structures have also faced sporadic attacks, while paddy fields ready for harvest have been ravaged.

The situation has deeply affected daily life, forcing residents, including students, to abandon routine activities to drive away elephant herds. According to local accounts, at least 10 to 15 villagers have lost their lives this year alone due to elephant attacks in the Bhutan-bordering belt, while several elephants themselves have faced untimely deaths.

Two years ago, the then BTC administration under Pramod Boro installed solar-powered protective fencing along parts of the Dimakuchi frontier as a mitigation measure. The system, however, now lies dysfunctional and abandoned. Despite assurances of a long-term solution, border residents say that commitments made at the time have remained unfulfilled.

The absence of adequate facilities and manpower at the Bornadi Wildlife Sanctuary forest office has compounded the crisis. Residents allege that repeated incidents of house destruction and loss of life have failed to evoke meaningful intervention from the State Forest Department led by Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary.

Meanwhile, villagers have also blamed large-scale clearing of nearly 100 bighas of forest at Bagrital by a local resident, Moni Boro, for creating ideal daytime refuge for elephant herds. They claim that the elephants emerging from these thickets descend upon villages after dark, causing destruction across 2 No. Dimakuchi, Sonajuli, Bagrital, and adjoining areas. Repeated appeals by villagers to clear the forest have reportedly gone unanswered.

With hundreds displaced, crops destroyed and livelihoods shattered, public anger has grown stronger. Local residents have renewed their appeal to MLA Biswajit Daimary, the State Government, the BTC administration under Hagrama Mohilary, and departmental authorities to take urgent and concrete steps. These include permanent conflict mitigation measures, strengthened forest department facilities, recruitment of adequate frontline staff and establishment of a fully-equipped forestry wing in the greater Dimakuchi area. Residents warn that without immediate intervention, the conflict will continue to escalate, putting the lives and futures of both villagers and elephants at grave risk.

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