A killer elephant is on the loose in eastern India,

Original image here

forest officials

A killer elephant is on the loose in eastern India,

tiger Original image here

forest officials have advised villagers to stock tiger urine and excrement to scare away this menace and his marauding herd.

The elephant, named Osama Bin Laden, and his herd have trampled seven people to death in the past three months in Jharkhand. Forest officials say elephants stay away from areas frequented by tigers. As a result, tiger excreta from the state’s zoos has been colleted and has been distributed to the villages in areas where Laden’s herd is active.

Villages have been asked not to venture into forests after dusk, and solar powered lights have been installed in the affected villages. Officials said about 400 people had died of elephant attacks and more than 700 had been injured in the last six years in Jharkhand. According to a census conducted in May, the number of elephants in Jharkhand has declined from 772 to 622 animals.

The district forest officer Paritosh Upadhayay said;

“Elephants usually don’t venture into the areas where tigers live. And the elephants can smell from far away places.”

The governments of Jharkhand and neighbouring West Bengal state have been working jointly to trap Laden and his herd, but the killer elephant is proving to be elusive.

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