A five-year-old girl was trampled to death by a wild elephant in Athirappilly of Kerala's Thrissur district on Monday.
The deceased is Agnimiya, a native of Puthenchira near Mala. Her father Nikhil, 35, and grandfather Jayan,55, suffered injuries in the elephant's attack. The injured were admitted to a private hospital in Chalakudy.
The tragic incident happened near Kannakkuzhi temple at 6:30pm on Monday where they had come to attend the final rites of the girl's grandmother.
The girl, her father and a relative were travelling on a motorbike when the animal attacked them on Chalakudy-Athirappally road around 7 pm on Monday, they said. The trio tried to run away when it noticed the elephant emerging from an oil-palm estate after stopping the bike. However, the girl fell down and the jumbo allegedly trampled her to death. The girl's father was injured when he tried to save her from the attack of the tusker, they added. The relative also sustained injuries when he fell down while trying to flee the spot.
Youngsters who gathered there made noise and distracted the elephant. They had to set a garbage dump on fire to chase the elephant back to the forest.
Protest
The people in the area on Tuesday blocked the Chalakudy-Athirappilly state highway in protest, seeking a permanent solution for the wild elephant menace.
Govt announced aid
The state government will give away an aid of Rs 5 lakh to the family of the victim, Forest Minister A K Saseendran said. He said it would be probed if the forest officials erred in their duty at night.
The district collector will visit the area where the tragedy took place.
