Wild elephant electrocuted in West Bengal

Binnaguri (West Bengal), Aug 16 (ANI): A rampaging adult female elephant was electrocuted at an Indian army camp at Binnaguri in West Bengal.

The elephant, which came from the Chapramari forest, first damaged a number of houses before getting entangled in a school's electrified fencing.

"The elephant came in the village in night. The elephant also attacked some houses of the village before entering the cantonment area. It received an electric shock and died there because of electrocution," said Dilip Toppo, a resident.

Wildlife officials are investigating the matter.

A team of veterinarians will conduct a post mortem to ascertain the exact cause of the death.

Home to 60 per cent of Asia's elephants, India has the highest death rate from human-elephant conflict, with 200-250 people and 100 elephants killed annually.

Habitat fragmentation, poaching of tusked males, and patchy forest law enforcement are problems, but numbers are rebounding. (ANI)