IWN Daily Digest — Thursday, 24 September 2026

A wild tusker with a long history of raiding villages near Panniyar in Idukki killed a 47-year-old tribal man in the small hours of Wednesday, an attack sharp enough that the Kerala Forest and Wildlife Department has now promised to relocate the animal out of the region.

As reported by ThePrint:

“A 47-year-old tribal man was killed in an elephant attack near Panniyar in this hill district in the small hours of Wednesday, forest officials. The man, identified as Vijayan, was returning home when the incident occurred, the officials said. They said that the tusker has been identified as ‘chakkakomban’ a notorious jumbo which periodically ventures into inhabited areas in the region, causing terror among the locals.”

Vijayan was walking home before dawn when he came face to face with the tusker, known locally as Chakkakomban, and tried to run. The elephant caught up with him within moments and killed him.

Chakkakomban is a familiar, unwelcome presence in the villages around Panniyar, where residents say the tusker wanders into homes and fields on a regular basis. Locals protested after the killing, and forest officials responded with an assurance that Chakkakomban and two female elephants known to frequent the same area would be moved out of the region.

Sources: ThePrint · Deccan Chronicle

India Wildlife News aggregates wildlife stories from across Indian media to bring the latest from the field to enthusiasts, conservationists, and curious readers — all in one place. Full credit and links to original sources are provided. We encourage readers to visit and support the original publishers.