Siliguri, July 06 (Siliguri Chronicle) – A 35-year-old woman was trampled to death by a wild elephant on Saturday morning in Raj Fapri, a forest-edge village near the Baikunthapur forest division in Siliguri.The victim, Sunita Thapa Chhetri, was a resident of Raj Fapri, which falls under the Sarugara forest range. The incident has once again raised concerns about the growing human-elephant conflict in north Bengal.
“A lone elephant strayed into the area early in the morning and suddenly came face-to-face with the woman. She was attacked and died on the spot,” said Raja M, divisional forest officer (DFO) of Baikunthapur.
He added that a forest patrol team from the Sarugara range was nearby at the time. After the incident, a Quick Response Team (QRT) was rushed to the spot. Authorities have also begun the process to provide ₹5 lakh as compensation to the victim’s family.
Forest officials said a proposal has been submitted to the state forest department to install solar-powered fencing in vulnerable forest fringe villages. The move aims to prevent repeated elephant incursions and reduce human-wildlife conflict.
Saturday’s tragedy comes just days after an awareness meeting was held at Ambari on June 30. The meeting focused on preventing elephant electrocution and finding ways to reduce growing man-animal conflict in the region.
“It was resolved during the meeting to step up monitoring across all four ranges Belakoba, Ambari, Sarugara, and Dabgram by engaging Joint Forest Management Committees (JFMCs) and intensifying patrolling by QRTs,” said a senior official.
The push for tighter monitoring comes in the wake of recurring human-elephant conflicts. Last year, a wild elephant was electrocuted in Takimari, part of the same forest division. Officials say some villagers have been using live electric wires around their fields to deter elephants — a dangerous and illegal practice.
At present, 66 JFMCs are active in the division, and 24 QRTs are deployed to carry out round-the-clock patrolling and monitor wildlife movement.
According to a forest department source, more than 50 wild elephants are currently roaming in the Targhera and Apalchand areas, with sightings of a few solitary elephants as well.
“The pre-monsoon meeting also focused on sensitising villagers and officials of the state power distribution utility to prevent illegal electricity connections in forest-edge settlements,” a forester added.
Koustabh Choudhury, founder of the Solitary Nature and Animal Protection (SNAP) Foundation, who also took part in the meeting, said the NGO plans to intensify awareness campaigns in local communities. He added that the most active and effective forest protection committee will be rewarded as part of their outreach efforts.
