A rogue tusker has unleashed unprecedented carnage across the Jharkhand-Odisha border, claiming 19 lives in just nine days. On Friday, the elephant trampled 40-year-old Prakash Malwa and a minor child in Benisagar, hauntingly standing guard over the child’s body for hours.
The district is paralyzed by fear following a series of midnight raids. The most horrific massacre occurred on January 6, when the tusker demolished a hut in Babadia village, killing four members of a single family as they slept. Only two children managed to survive the nightmare. Similar fatal attacks have been reported across Noamundi and Hatgamharia blocks, with victims being targeted while sleeping or during treatment for injuries.
Forest officials confirmed this is the same "lone killer" responsible for previous deaths in Goilkera. Despite using microphones, patrols, and tracking, the department has failed to contain the animal, which continuously shifts its territory.
Villages now resemble ghost towns after dark as terrified residents remain barricaded in their homes, claiming official efforts are woefully insufficient to stop the mounting death toll.