Wild elephants invade village forcing residents to stay awake all night

KANCHANPUR: Residents of Baduwal village in Dodhara Chandani Municipality-3, Kanchanpur, are living in constant fear as herds of wild elephants have been entering their settlement at night, destroying crops and damaging property.

The elephants, believed to be coming from India’s Dudhwa National Park, have been invading the village every night. Ram Sunar, a local resident, said villagers are forced to stay awake throughout the night to protect their homes and fields.

“The elephants have destroyed the paddy I planted on four and a half bighas of land,” he said. “Now I’m left with no choice but to buy rice for my family.”

According to Sunar, the elephants return every year, causing widespread damage to both crops and houses. “Despite the yearly destruction, no concrete steps have been taken to stop them. We’ve never been able to harvest our crops safely,” he added.

Savitri Mahata of Badubal Tole said a herd of 30 to 40 elephants, including calves, comes into the village every night. “It’s extremely difficult to protect our homes and crops,” she said. “The elephants have even destroyed houses. To chase them away, we light fires and stay awake all night. We are living in fear.”

Due to the repeated destruction caused by the elephants, many villagers have stopped farming altogether. Much of the agricultural land in the area now lies barren. “We farm using money earned through hard labor, but the crops are never harvested,” said Karan Bahadur Kami, another resident of Baduwal. “When we can’t bring home what we’ve planted, we have no choice but to buy food. Our land is useless.”

Locals claim that due to the village’s proximity to the Indian border, efforts to install protective fencing have been blocked by Indian authorities. They are now urging the local government to find a permanent solution, especially since wild elephants have killed several people in past years in this area.

The problem is not limited to Baduwal — other parts of Dodhara Chandani and nearby municipalities have also been affected by elephant incursions.