Over 50 passengers had a providential escape when a wild elephant attacked the bus in which they were travelling near Artham village of Komarada mandal in Parvatipuram-Manyam district of Andhra Pradesh on Monday morning.
The passengers travelling from Rayagada of Odisha to Parvatipuram in the private bus were frightened by the unexpected attack. The driver, reacting swiftly, closed the doors and stopped the vehicle. The elephant damaged the glass panes of the bus and left the place, much to the relief of the passengers. The pachyderm also damaged some bikes parked near the ward secretariat of the village.
The traffic in the route was disrupted for more than three hours as people avoided the road fearing more jumbo attacks.
Even as the District Forest Officer G.A.P. Prasuna claimed that the department had taken many steps to prevent human-animal conflict in the district, the opposition parties alleged negligence by officials in tracking the movement of the wild animals straying into human habitations and taking proper measures to prevent attacks on people and destruction of crops.
