Rogue elephant claims two more lives in Jharkhand’s West Singhbhum

A wild elephant in Jharkhand’s West Singhbhum district killed two more people in Chaibasa including a minor on Friday (January 9, 2026). The incident happened in Tilkouti village under Majhgaon police station area.

In the last nine days, the tusker has killed 17 people in the Chaibasa forest division. The forest department officials are on the spot and efforts are on to tranquilise and control the rogue elephant.

According to the police, one deceased has been identified as Prakash Das, 40, and a minor boy. When the villagers reached the spot, they found that Das’s head was separated from the body. 

The eyewitness said that the wild elephant has one tusk, but it has not been identified by the police or the forest department officials. The incident took place near to the Odisha border.

Following the reports, a team from Vantara, Gujarat, teams from Bankura in West Bengal, teams from Odisha Wildlife and Jamshedpur have reached the spot along with Aditya Narayan, Forest Divisional Officer (DFO), Chaibasa to control the situation.

As per the villagers, elephant with one tusk is not the one that previously killed people.

While speaking to The Hindu, Mr. Narayan said, “We are camping in the forest and all efforts are being made to identify, tranquilise the elephant. So far 17 people have been killed by the wild elephant. However, we are not sure how many rogue elephants are there. We are also not sure whether the elephant has come from Odisha or from the forest of Chaibasa.”

Mr. Narayan added that the elephant is moving violently across the Kolhan region, making it difficult for forest officials and patrolling teams to locate it. They are also using drones to locate the elephant. 

The elephant mostly attacks at night when people are sleeping. Since January 1, it has repeatedly entered the area where people reside and killed them.

On January 6, 2026, the elephant terror was at its peak when it killed seven villagers in Babadia village in Noamundi block and Sialjoda village in Hatgamariah police station area. Out of the seven victims, four members were from the same family which included husband-wife and their two minor children.

Despite the frequent incidents, the forest department has failed to succeed in controlling the elephants. Efforts are being made to drive away the elephant back into the forest with the help of patrolling teams and firecrackers. People in the area are now afraid to even leave their homes at night.

Villagers have demanded a permanent solution and compensation for the family of the deceased.