North Lakhimpur: A wild elephant was found dead in a paddy field at No. 1 Ex-Servicemen village in the Bogeebeel-Rampur area of Lakhimpur district, allegedly after coming into contact with an illegally installed live electric wire. The incident came to light on the morning of Diwali.
The incident occurred near the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border, under the jurisdiction of Silaneebari Police Outpost. Preliminary findings indicate that the elephant was electrocuted by a live wire stretched across the agricultural field on Saturday night.
The wire was reportedly laid to prevent wild elephants from entering the fields and feeding on ripening paddy crops.
According to officials of the Harmutty Forest Range under the Lakhimpur Forest Division, the elephant was estimated to be between 20 and 25 years old. Forest officials suspect that it was a female with a calf, as signs of suckling were reportedly found on the carcass.
A forest official said the Harmuti Range Officer informed him about the incident. After reaching the spot, he found the carcass of an elephant estimated to be around 20 to 25 years old. The presence of signs of suckling suggested that the animal could have been a female with a calf.
Forest officials have picked up two local residents, identified as Krishna Bahadur Limbu and Lam Bahadur Limbo, for questioning in connection with the elephant’s death.
The incident has once again brought attention to the growing human-elephant conflict in the Rampur-Bogeebeel region of Lakhimpur, particularly during the paddy harvesting season.
Wild elephant herds frequently move down from the neighbouring hills of Arunachal Pradesh into agricultural fields in search of food. These movements often lead to conflicts with local residents.
Habitat loss and fragmentation, deforestation and the depletion of natural food sources have been identified as major factors behind the increasing movement of elephants into human settlements.
The use of live electric wires to keep elephants away from agricultural land has also emerged as a serious threat to the animals, with such practices posing a risk to their survival.