Killer Elephant Terrifies Villagers With Deadly Rampages

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An elephant in India, known for terrifying villagers with deadly rampages, has reportedly killed its eleventh person.

An auto rickshaw driver, identified as Balraj, was in his vehicle in the southern Indian town of Cumbum when the elephant destroyed it. Balraj fell while trying to flee the tusker, suffering a severe head injury and internal bleeding as a result, local news outlet Onmanorama reported. He later succumbed to his injuries in hospital.

The elephant, named Arikomban, is known to local people, particularly in Cumbum in the state of Tamil Nadu.

Over the years the elephant has not just killed 11 people, but has also destroyed around 300 homes.

A picture shows forest officials transporting Arikomban in the Indian state of Kerala taken on April 29, 2023. An auto rickshaw driver has died following an attack by the elephant in the neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu.
SHIYAMI / Contributo/Getty

His name Arikomban, which means “rice tusker,” pays homage to the elephant’s particular tendency of raiding rice shops.

Officials have tranquilized and transported him to nature reserves several times. Earlier in May he was relocated to Periyar Tiger Reserve, the BBC reported. The elephant is also fitted by a GPS collar, which informs authorities of his movements.

Many locals protested about his relocation. At first, officials wanted to keep the elephant captive, however this was met with resistance from animal welfare groups.

People argue that relocating one elephant, however, will not solve the wider problem of human wildlife conflict in the area.

Human and elephant conflict has been on the rise in India for years, and it is becoming increasingly problematic. India is home to 60 percent of the remaining wild Asian elephant population, with around 30,000 individuals.

Experts believe conflicts have increased because of habitat loss, which has occurred because of expanding human development projects.

As human populations and villages expand, elephant habitats are becoming smaller, which forces humans and wildlife together more frequently.

Fragmented habitats can also cause crop raiding, when elephants stray onto farmlands in search of food and water, ruining growing crops as they do so.

While elephants are usually gentle creatures, they can be extremely dangerous. Some can weigh up to 8,000 pounds and their trunks have around 40,000 muscles in them.

Arikomban was not always a troublemaker. A few years ago, when houses were made of bamboo and grass, the elephant caused little damage in towns when he was looking for food, the New Indian Express reported.

But as more houses from concrete were built, and the human population expanded, the elephant started causing more damage.

Following the most recent incident, authorities warned local residents to stay inside.

The elephant fled into a nearby forest after attacking the man, Onmanorama reported.

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