Man killed in wild elephant attack while collecting mushrooms in Chhattisgarh's Korba

Korba, Jul 9 (PTI) A 55-year-old man was trampled to death by an elephant while he was collecting wild mushrooms in a forest in Chhattisgarh's Korba district on Thursday, officials said, second such fatality in less than two weeks. The deceased, Jahaj Singh Rathia, a resident of Pidia village, ventured into the Turrikatra forest in the morning to collect 'putu' (wild mushrooms), a seasonal jungle produce commonly gathered during the monsoon and cooked as a vegetable, when he encountered an elephant, a forest department official said. The wild animal suddenly attacked Rathia, inflicting injuries that led to his death on the spot. Forest department personnel and local administration officials rushed to the spot after being alerted and sent the body for post-mortem examination, he said. The victim's family was provided an immediate relief of Rs 25,000 by the administration, while the remaining compensation of Rs 5.75 lakh will be released after completion of prescribed formalities, he informed. Forest officials said villagers venture into forests in large numbers during the rainy season to collect mushrooms and other minor forest produce, a period that coincides with increased elephant movement, resulting in a higher risk of human-animal conflict. The department has appealed to villagers to avoid entering forests if elephant movement has been reported. The latest fatality comes less than two weeks after a 40-year-old herdsman was killed in an elephant attack in a forest in Korba district on June 28. Earlier, on June 23, a 70-year-old woman, Sukhmat Bai, was also killed by a tusker in the district. Human-elephant conflict has remained a major concern in northern Chhattisgarh for more than a decade and has expanded into parts of the central region in recent years. Korba is among the worst-affected districts, along with Surguja, Raigarh, Surajpur, Jashpur and Balrampur, where frequent elephant movement into villages and farmlands often leads to casualties and crop damage. According to forest department officials, more than 330 people have been killed in elephant attacks across Chhattisgarh over the past five years. PTI COR TKP RSY