Tezpur: The All Adivasi Students’ Association and Assam Tea Tribes Students’ Association today blocked NH 15 at Behali in Sonitpur district for nearly an hour to protest against the forest department’s failure to protect the border villages from elephants.
The blockade was in protest against the death of five persons from a family who were killed last night by a wild elephant at Thandapani in Behmari panchayat under Behali police station near Arunachal Pradesh border in Biswanath district.
Sources said the victims have been identified as Maji Murmu, 35, his wife Suny, 24, daughters Lakhi, 10, and Mohagini, 4, and a nine-day-old child, Rinsi. Rashmi Murmu, 3, from the same family, ran outside the house and was rescued by the villagers.
Protesters stopped forest department officials from entering the village while a police team arrived at the spot this morning and recovered the bodies for post mortem,The Telegraph reported.
The president of Behmari panchyat, Debokanta Kherua, told The Telegraph that the tusker, which had come from Behali reserve forest in search of food, trampled the five while they were asleep.
Thandapani, 150km from Tezpur and around 330km from Guwahati, is on the border of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh in Behali constituency.
After the incident, political leaders, including Congress leader Premlal Gunju and BJP candidate from from Behali constituency, Ranjit Dutta, rushed to the spot and offered to help the villagers.
The villagers said if the government really means to help, it should plant more trees and dig watering holes inside Behali forest, otherwise, wild elephants would come regularly and destroy crops and kill people.
Last year, two persons were trampled to death by a wild elephant at Monabari tea estate in Sonitpur district.