Officials said the elephant had separated from a herd of six that migrated from Nepal’s Shuklaphanta National Park into the reserve around six weeks ago
Pilibhit : A wild elephant strayed into Puranpur town on Wednesday night, wandering through govt compounds, a hospital, a police station, residential colonies and the local market before forest officials and police guided it back to the nearby Haripur forest range around 1.30 am on Thursday. Stay updated with the latest Bareilly news.
“No injuries or property damage were reported,” said Manish Singh , DFO Pilibhit Tiger Reserve. He said forest and police personnel struggled to control crowds of curious residents who had gathered to watch the male tusker. Officials said the elephant had separated from a herd of six that migrated from Nepal’s Shuklaphanta National Park into the reserve around six weeks ago. In a formal complaint to DFO, local community leader Noor Ahmad Azhari said, “Thousands of lives were at risk as the animal went on a rampage. He also alleged that some personnel arrived “visibly intoxicated and verbally abused residents trying to monitor the animal”. DFO said the allegations against forest personnel would be investigated before any departmental action was taken.
Residents, meanwhile, alleged that forest rangers arrived hours after the elephant entered the town. the forest rescue team arrived hours later While the police managed the situation on the ground. Download the TOI App.