Elephants crush two to death in Jharkhand

Rampaging elephants trampled two people to death in a village on the outskirts of the Jharkhand capital Ranchi Friday, an official said Saturday.

"Two people were trampled to death by a herd of elephants at Bisa village on the outskirts of Ranchi," Rajiv Bakshi, district forest officer of Ranchi, told IANS. The victims have been identified as Sukra and Budhram.

"The next of kin of each victim was provided Rs.25,000. The rest of the amount will be paid later," Bakshi said.

The Jharkhand government pays Rs.1.50 lakh to the family members of each person killed by elephants in the state. There is a provision to provide Rs.25,000 cash as immediate relief.

Elephants venture into the villages of the state on regular basis. There have been several instances where they have destroyed crops, damaged houses and killed people.