Kodagu residents urge Forest Dept. to drive away the jumbos

Ponnampet: Man-animal conflicts have increased in Kodagu region with a coffee planter killed by a wild elephant at Srimangala hobli in Ponnampet taluk in the early hours of today.

The deceased has been identified as Mokalamada Rathu, a resident of Kaiemani.

Today morning, Rathu was walking towards his coffee estate located between Kurchi and Kaiemani, when the wild elephant suddenly appeared and trampled him to death. His body was shifted to Kutta Government Hospital for postmortem.

Meanwhile, local residents said that about eight to ten wild elephants have been camping in Kurchi and Kaiemani region in Srimangala hobli since a few days creating a sense of fear among estate workers, who are refusing to go to work as the wild elephants are being spotted during day time.

The residents have urged the Forest Department to take steps to drive the wild elephants back to the forest.