Wild elephants damage homes and crops in Udayapur

Wild elephants have repeatedly invaded settlements in Nepal's Udayapur district for the past two weeks, causing significant damage to homes, food supplies, and farmland. Residents live in constant fear as the animals raid villages almost nightly, destroying property and crops.

Police Inspector Prabhab Limbu reported that the elephants have targeted wards 4 and 7 of Chaudandigadhi Municipality since June 27. Preliminary estimates place the total damage at around Rs1.62 million across 13 households. The elephants have torn through roofs and walls, ruining stored grains like paddy, rice, and maize, along with clothing, utensils, poultry, and standing crops.

Local police teams, assisted by residents, have driven the elephants back into nearby forests after each incident. Lamachauri in ward 7 has been particularly hard-hit, with residents like Briddhi Maya Rai reporting losses of approximately Rs400,000. Other families also sustained substantial damage to their homes and livelihoods.

Fear grips the affected communities, with many residents afraid to go out after dark. They are urgently seeking immediate relief, fair compensation, and sustainable solutions to mitigate the growing danger posed by the wild elephants. Residents noted the elephants enter villages at night from nearby forests in search of food and water, destroying everything in their path.

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We are afraid to move around after dark because the elephants keep returning.