The deceased Girish
Credit: DH Photo
An RRT (Rapid Response Team) personnel died after suffering severe injuries in an elephant attack. The incident happened during an operation to drive the jumbo back to the forest at Kedakal village, near Suntikoppa in Kodagu, on Monday.
Girish (35), a staff of Anekadu range RRT, is the deceased. He was part of the 35-40-membered team which was deployed to push the elephant into the forest.
Even though the seriously injured Girish was rushed to the district government hospital in Madikeri, he breathed his last without responding to the treatment.
Girish was working with the RRT for several years.
DFO A T Poovaiah and other officials visited the district hospital.
The lone tusker has been bothering the people in Kedakal D block, Karekolli and surrounding areas for the past many days. He is also reportedly destroying crops.
Following a complaint by the villagers to the forest department, an operation was taken up to drive the tusker back to the forest.
The elephant had also attacked and injured a person named Murugesh on Monday. His motorbike was also damaged by the pachyderm.
On the way, the jumbo also chased another person. Luckily, the survivor ran inside the forest and made a narrow escape. The angry tusker mangled the bike and later made its way into Devarakadu forest.