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Published : 08 Jun 2025, 08:47 PM
A herd of wild elephants is rampaging in the villages adjacent to Sherpur’s Nalitabari Upazila border, causing residents to spend sleepless nights.
Many are being forced to leave their homes and seek shelter elsewhere.
Residents said the situation has arisen because herds of wild elephants have been entering the locality in search of food since the Boro paddy harvest was completed.
The increasing frequency of these incidents is leaving people disoriented.
Mymensingh Forest Department’s Madhutila Forest Range Officer Dewan Ali said the government is providing compensation to those affected by wild elephants.
The forest department is also doing its best to protect both elephants and people.
On May 30, a herd of wild elephants rampaged through Puragau Union, located near the border, in search of food.
During heavy rain, an estimated 40 to 50 elephants damaged several homes and consumed rice stored inside.
They also ate jackfruit and banana trees growing in the courtyards.
As a result, the homes of 8 to 10 families in Batkuchi village suffered significant damage overnight.
Victims Abdul Majid and Rustam Ali, along with other residents of the village, said the Boro paddy harvest had been completed just a few days earlier.
With no rice left in the fields, the elephants have started targeting homes every night, breaking in to feed on the stored rice.
Currently, due to continuous rainfall, villagers are unable to leave their homes at night to chase away the elephants.
Even then, some attempting to drive away the animals are risking their lives in attacks.
On the night of May 29, an elderly woman named Surtan Nesa, 65, was dragged out of her house by a group of elephants, twisted in their trunks, and brutally trampled to death.
On May 20, two more people lost their lives in separate elephant attacks at Jhenaigati Upazila.
According to locals, while the group of wild elephants previously attacked houses near the hills, they are now moving freely inside the village.
In response to the repeated attacks by wild elephants, residents of Nalitabari Upazila have begun cutting down both small and large trees from their courtyards.
At night, villagers are taking turns to guard their homes in groups, hoping to protect themselves from further destruction.
Aynal Haque, a resident of Batkuchi village, said they are struggling to fend off the elephants due to a lack of resources. “We don’t have enough diesel or searchlights to drive them away,” he said.
“We’ve requested these materials from the forest department.
“We are in a state of panic. We are spending nights in fear of wild elephants in the rain and the dark. We want a permanent solution.”
Nalitabari Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Farzana Akter Bobi said the incidents are being investigated.
In addition, if the affected people apply through the forest department, compensation will be provided by the government.
