Wild elephant herd wreaks havoc in Rani, villagers spend sleepless nights

A CORRESPONDENT 

AZARA: The menace of wild elephants continues unabated in Rani, a locality along the Assam–Meghalaya border near Guwahati, causing widespread panic among residents. Repeated nightly raids by herds of wild elephants have forced villagers to remain awake through the night in fear.

On Thursday night, a group of three to four wild elephants created havoc at Manikpur village under Mairapur in Rani. The herd severely damaged the residence of Kalamani Das, reducing parts of the house to ruins. Fortunately, Das managed to escape in time and narrowly saved his life.

The elephants also caused extensive damage to the premises of several nearby households, including those of Gajiram Das, Anil Talukdar, Jibon Thakuria, and Pushpa Thakuria. In another incident, the herd broke into the granary of one Sanjib Das and consumed stored paddy, leaving the family in distress.

Additionally, the elephants damaged an agricultural farm set up at Manikpur village by Chabin Chandra Nath, an assistant teacher of Challi Primary School located along the Meghalaya border. The animals broke through the fencing and destroyed various plants and crops inside the farm.

Notably, this year’s wild elephant incursions appear to have surpassed all previous records in the area. Residents of several villages — including Manikpur, Mairapur, Purana Shukurberia, Belguri, Patgaon, Majpara, Nalapara, and Bikrampur have been spending sleepless nights due to the growing threat with Manikpur emerging as the worst affected village under persistent elephant attacks.

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