Idukki, 23 September (H.S.): A 47-year-old man was killed in a wild elephant attack at Poopara in Idukki district early on Wednesday, the fourth such death reported in the area in four months.

The victim, P V Vijayan, was returning home after guarding his farmland when the elephant attacked him, according to local residents. Vijayan was a resident of Poopara, where encounters with wild elephants have become a recurring concern for people living and working near agricultural land.

Residents believe the elephant involved was Chakkakomban, a tusker known to enter inhabited areas. The Forest Department, however, has yet to confirm whether Chakkakomban was responsible for the attack.

The latest death has renewed concern in Poopara over the risk faced by people who travel to their fields before dawn or return home after keeping watch over crops at night. Vijayan was on his way back from such a vigil when the attack occurred.

For farming families in the area, guarding crops can mean spending hours in or near fields at times when visibility is poor. The circumstances of Wednesday’s attack have drawn attention to the danger residents face even while travelling between their farmland and homes.

According to local residents, three other people have died in wild elephant attacks in Poopara during the past four months. Vijayan’s death brings the reported toll in that period to four. Further details about the earlier incidents were not immediately available.

The identity of the elephant remains a key question. Although residents have named Chakkakomban, an official determination will depend on the Forest Department’s assessment of the incident. Until then, the claim that the tusker carried out Wednesday’s attack remains unconfirmed.

Vijayan’s death adds to the anxiety among Poopara residents, who say wild elephants have repeatedly entered areas where people live and farm. The latest incident has again brought the community’s safety concerns into focus.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Arun Lakshman