Karnataka - Hassan   

Elephant death in Alur now a mystery

Concerned: Village people visit the site where a 35-year-old elephant was electrocuted at Madihalli in Alur taluk on Saturday.

HASSAN: The death of a 35-year-old elephant in Madihalli village in Alur taluk on Saturday has been shrouded in mystery.

According to eye witnesses, over 14 elephants had descended from Dodda Betta and approached the paddy fields of Range Gowda near Madihalli. The crop on the field was ready for harvest. The elephant that led the others, tried to enter the fields but was caught between the live fencing put up by the landowner. It had fallen into a crevasse full of water upon which the whole water body was electrified. With a loud scream, it died. On hearing the loud sound, the other elephants fled to Dodda Betta. Residents of the village informed presspersons who visited the village on Saturday.

The elephant that had died had been troubling the residents for years and had damaged their crops. To save their crop from elephant attacks, farmers had fenced their lands with electric wiring.

According to officials of the Department of Forests, the elephant might have fallen from Dodda Betta or may have been pushed by other elephants. However, this argument does not hold water as there are no injury marks on its body. No evidence of uprooted plants has been found from Dodda Betta to Madihalli, suggesting that the animal had rolled over.

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