Search for single-tusked elephant after 22 killed in India rampage | India

Indian forest authorities are searching for an elephant that killed more than 20 people during a days-long rampage in the eastern state of Jharkand.

Since early January, 22 people have been killed by a single-tusked elephant that was ravaging forests and villages in Jharkand’s West Singhbhum district.

The attacks took place mainly at night, as the elephant entered small villages. The first victim was a 35-year-old man from Bandijhari village on January 1. Since then, those trampled to death or sustaining fatal injuries include a couple and their two young children and a forest department official.

The region was put on alert and residents of Chaibasa district, where the elephant was last seen, were warned to stay away from forest areas and not go out at night.

Chaibasa district divisional forest officer Aditya Narayan said they believed a young male elephant had been separated from his herd and had become “extremely violent”. Narayan said three attempts had been made to tranquilize the elephant, but all had failed so far.

“Our team is on alert and efforts to tranquilize it will resume. Villagers are strictly advised not to enter the forests and remain vigilant,” he told local media.

The elephant travels nearly 30 km a day and more than 100 forest department officials were assigned to the search operation to find it, but without success.

Wildlife specialists from three other states were also mobilized to try to locate the elephant, but officials said the animal’s volatility and erratic path through forests made it difficult to monitor its movements.

The rampage comes as deadly human-elephant conflicts intensify in India, blamed on growing deforestation, food and water shortages and growing residential encroachment in areas that were once elephant corridors.

About 10% of areas that were once corridors for elephants – safe routes for their migration – no longer exist. Elephants also die in large numbers from incidents such as electrocution, train collisions and retaliatory poisonings.

Over the past five years, more than 2,800 people have died in India following fatal encounters with elephants.

In states like Andhra Pradesh, AI early warning systems have been introduced in some villages to detect elephant intrusions and protect villagers.