A 33-year-old tourist from Tamil Nadu died after being caught in a struggle between two captive elephants at Dubari Elephant Camp in Kodagu district on Monday, officials said.
A senior official familiar with the matter said that tourist J Tulasi had arrived in the area the previous day with her husband and son.
The incident occurred around noon, when tourists gathered near a lake to watch two elephants, Marthanda and Kangan, as they took a bath as part of their daily routine.
The official said that the conflict started after Marthanda suddenly bumped into Kanjan. Despite efforts by auto drivers M Ghose and Vijay Kumar to control them, Kanjan attacked Marthanda and rammed him. When Marthanda lost her balance and fell, the woman was trapped under the elephant and died. They added that she was killed instantly.
Deputy Range Forest Officer Ranjan K. said:
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Musth refers to a cyclic hormonal secretion that causes increased aggression in male elephants.
The body was later taken to the Kushalnagar Taluk Government Hospital for a post-mortem examination and was later returned to the woman’s family, officials said.
Meanwhile, state Forest Minister Ishwar Khander has directed officials to frame standard operating procedures for visitor safety at elephant camps across the state. He also ordered a comprehensive investigation into the matter. “Visitors should stand at least 100 feet away while watching the elephants bathing. Under no circumstances should tourists be allowed to get close to the elephants for taking selfies, taking photographs or bathing activities. Tourists should also not be allowed to feed the elephants things like banana, jaggery, sugarcane or any other food by hand,” he added.
They added that forest officers reached the camp soon after the incident and launched an investigation.
Dubare Elephant Camp is among the most popular wildlife tourist attractions in Karnataka and regularly attracts visitors to observe elephant training and bathing activities.
