Wild elephants trampled a man to death at around 9:30 pm on Thursday at Gharialdubi under Bokajan Police Station in Karbi Anglong district.
The deceased has been identified as 45-year-old Shankar Malakar.
“Last night at around 9.30 pm, a herd of 4-5 wild elephants entered Gharialdubi village and damaged several houses and plants,” sources.
“When Shankar Malakar came on the way of the wild elephants, he was trampled to death on the spot,” sources added.
The villagers later managed to chase away the elephants.
Bokajan police reached the spot and took the body of Malakar for conducting post-mortem.
Incidents of man-elephant conflict continue to take place in Karbi Anglong and West Karbi Anglong districts.
For the last few months, a huge herd of around 100 elephants has been taking shelter in the Kheroni area under West Karbi Anglong district.
The herd of elephants gets divided in the evening to forage into the nearby villages.
Whenever a herd of wild elephants enters a village, they damage houses and mainly target paddy fields.
They also damage arecanut, coconut and banana trees.
The forest cover in Karbi Anglong and West Karbi Anglong has been reduced due to deforestation, illegal felling of trees and encroachment.
Smuggling of timber to the neighbouring state of Meghalaya from West Karbi Anglong continues unabated even though the forest department seizes timber-laden vehicles from time to time.
