Elephants electrocuted in Manyam district

VISHAKHAPATNAM: In a tragic incident, four elephants died on the spot when they attempted to pull down a transformer on the outskirts of Katragadda village in Bhamini mandal in Parvathipuram Manyam district on Friday.

A herd of six elephants were moving in the area. Of the dead, two were female, two male and a male calf. The remaining two elephants meanwhile strayed into the neighbouring cashew orchards under the Manumakonda forest area.

As many as 14 elephants are moving around the forest in the Manyam district. The herd has 12 females and two males, district forest officer GRPO Prasuna said.

She along with Srikakulam DFO Nisha Kumari and other forest officials reached the spot and inspected the deceased wild elephants. A post-mortem of the dead elephants would be done by veterinarians from  Visakhapatnam.

Forest officials said a herd of six elephants including two male tuskers entered the Bhamini mandal in Parvathipuram -Manyam district through Vamsadhara River on February 7. The herd has been creating havoc in Bhamini mandal under Seethampeta agency by destroying sugarcane, banana, maize, paddy and other horticulture crops.

The herd also destroyed solar panels, pump sets, and other machinery used for the podu cultivation.

In the early hours on Friday, the herd entered Bommika Minnarao's fields in Katragadda revenue limits and destroyed the standing crops. Later, the herd took on the electric transformer and got electrocuted.

Based on the locals' information, Parvathipuram -Manyam and Srikakulam forest officials rushed to the spot. The dead elephants would be cremated after the postmortem.

The DFO said a proposal for constructing a shelter for wild elephants was pending with the government.