A herd of wild elephants has smashed six farmers' homes in Nalitabari upazila of Sherpur and eaten their paddy and rice. The herd of 30 to 35 elephants went on the rampage at around 9pm on Thursday, 4 July, in the zero point area of Nakugaon land port on the upazila's border.

A village policeman, Niranjan Robidas, 38, suffered a stroke while trying to drive the elephants away and is being treated at Sherpur Sadar Hospital. Several local farmers were also injured.

Locals say herds of wild elephants often come down into settlements along the border in search of food. The report says the herd rampaged through the zero point area of Nakugaon land port at around 9pm on Wednesday. The elephants broke six homes belonging to farmers Ranjit Ghosh, Sindhu Dhalu, Niranjan Robidas and Suman Robidas, smashed the furniture inside, and ate and scattered the paddy and rice. They also trampled 20 decimals of Aman seedbed belonging to farmer Rupen Dhalu, 45.

The herd ate or scattered on the ground 20 maunds of paddy and 5 maunds of rice belonging to Ranjit Ghosh, 20 maunds of paddy and rice belonging to Sindhu Dhalu, 15 maunds of paddy belonging to village policeman Niranjan Robidas and 15 maunds of paddy and rice belonging to Suman Robidas. The elephants broke furniture and a fridge, knocked down jackfruit and mango trees in the yards, and wrecked Ranjit Ghosh's cowshed, injuring a cow.

Ranjit, one of the affected farmers, said: "The paddy and rice to feed us for the whole year were in the house. The elephants broke the house and finished everything, furniture and all. What will my family eat now?"

Mizanur Rahman, chairman of Nayabil union, said that if food could be arranged for the elephants in the hills, people on the border could sleep a little more peacefully.

Rafiqul Islam, Madhutila range officer of the Mymensingh forest division, said the herd is now in the hills around Nakugaon. The affected area has been inspected and the damage assessed, and the forest department will help the affected families on application, he said.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.