Elephants damage houses, crops in Sonepur

Sonepur: A herd of 18 elephants destroyed houses and crops at Barghat and Padmapur under Banki forest range of Sonepur district on Saturday.
“Paddy crops over three acres have completely been destroyed by the wild elephants that strayed into the villages from Rairakhol and nearby forested areas. The forest department should take concrete steps to keep them away from human settlements,” a local resident said.
The forest officials, who reached the spot after being informed about the incident, said they were tracking the movement of the animals and efforts are underway to drive them away. They assured that crop loss compensation will be provided to the affected villagers within 15 days.