Dibrugarh: Several workers were injured in a wild elephant attack near the Tipam tea estate in the Naharkatia area of Dibrugarh district, Assam, on Wednesday morning.
The incident occurred when a group of workers was heading towards their daily tasks along the Tipam hills.
While the majority managed to escape, seven women were caught off guard by the elephant, leaving four with serious injuries and three with minor ones.
The injured workers, identified as Rashmi Gowala, Mamoni Gowala, Shilpi Bhuyan, Jaya Bawri, Sonali Gowala, Rupali Hazda, and Bobita Bhuyan, were quickly transported to Naharkatia Civil Hospital for medical treatment.
One of the workers shared the terrifying experience, saying, “There were 17 of us walking along the road when the elephant suddenly attacked us from behind. Seven of us got injured.”
The Tipam tea estate, situated near the hills, is no stranger to elephant incursions, with wild elephants frequently entering human settlements.
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This behaviour is often linked to the decreasing forest cover, which forces wildlife to venture closer to populated areas in search of food.
The rise in human-elephant conflicts across Assam calls attention to the pressing need for comprehensive conservation efforts and strategies to reduce such incidents.
Local authorities are under increasing pressure to find ways to protect both human lives and wildlife in the region.
