Elderly woman trampled to death by elephant

BALASORE: A 61-year-old woman, Punti Dehuri, was killed by a wild elephant early on Tuesday in Santargadi village under Nilagiri police limits.

Punti, wife of Krushna Chandra Dehuri, encountered the elephant after stepping outside her house.

Sources said the elephant had most likely entered the village from Kuldiha sanctuary in search of food. It grabbed Punti with its trunk and repeatedly threw her to the ground, causing severe injuries.

Her family, alerted by the commotion, drove the elephant away and rushed Punti to Nilagiri hospital, where she was declared dead.

Nilagiri police have seized the body and sent it for postmortem.

Forest department officials stated that the family will receive compensation as per government norms after completing formalities and uploading the necessary details on the Anukampa portal.