🐘 July 13 2026

July 13, 2026

The Elephant News Service is provided by Save the Elephants for elephant lovers, scientists and conservationists who want to stay informed on the latest elephant news from reputable media sources worldwide. The stories are presented in no particular order.

The Sentinel (India), July 12, 2026

A local was arrested for allegedly installing an illegal electric fence that led to the death by electrocution of a female wild elephant in a paddy field at Balijan near the Duarmara reserve forest in Tinsukia district. Preliminary investigations and post-mortem reports have confirmed electrocution as the cause of death, forest officials said. The arrested individual, identified as Lehuk Pator, had set up the unauthorised electric fence around his residence near the Upper Dehing reserve forest under Dihing Patkai Elephant Reserve to deter intruding wild elephants.

The Sentinel (India), July 12, 2026

To encourage better harmony between fringe Forest villagers and wildlife, the Kachugaon forest division conducted a daylong awareness programme on preventing human-elephant conflict at Thaisouguri FRA village under the Sanfang range. The event brought together forest officials, wildlife experts, security agencies like SSB, Territorial Army, community leaders, and residents from villages located near the Raimona National Park to discuss measures for reducing conflicts between humans and elephants.

Hiru News (Sri Lanka), July 12, 2026

A woman died after sustaining critical injuries in a wild elephant attack in Kiwulawadiya, Laggala, according to Laggala Police. The deceased is a 45-year-old woman who lives in the same locality. Preliminary investigations conducted by the Police revealed that the woman encountered the wild elephant attack on the Kiwulawadiya-Karamana road while she walking to a neibghour's house. She succumbed to her injuries after admission to the Laggala Hospital, and the Laggala Police conduct further investigations into the incident.

Bibar Daimary, News Wire (India), July 12, 2026

A seven-year-old wild elephant turned up dead near the Nampathar Reserved Forest in Boko. The carcass lay just 100 metres from the main road. Forest Department staff from the Bandapara office arrived on site to secure the area and launch an inquiry. Initial findings point toward electrocution as the cause. Officials do not believe the animal died of natural causes. However, the final verdict rests on a pending post-mortem report. "Forest officials said the death did not appear to be natural based on initial observations." Authorities will determine if legal action is necessary once they get the results.

Times of India (India), July 12, 2026

Raising serious concerns about the conservation of wild elephants and chances for increased human-wildlife conflicts, Periya-Pakranthalam elephant corridor within Wayanad Elephant Reserve is facing serious obstruction due to anthropogenic activities. Environmentalists have written to Union ministry of environment, forests and climate change, Project Elephant wing and state forest department officials, requesting urgent intervention to prevent land use changes within the corridor.

Narendra Sethi, The New Indian Express (India), July 11, 2026

An adult elephant has been spotted at an altitude of nearly 2,900 metres in Uttarakhand's Pauri Garhwal district, a rare occurrence that has surprised wildlife experts and raised concerns over a possible shift in elephant movement patterns. The elephant was sighted near Bhawansi village, close to Paukhal, under the Dugadda development block. The area, located at around 2,982 metres, has not traditionally been known as elephant habitat.

Views Bangladesh (Bangladesh), July 11, 2026

A 20-25-year-old mother elephant has been critically injured after falling nearly 300 feet from a hill in Teknaf, Cox's Bazar, during heavy rainfall. The elephant's two hind legs are broken, and it has suffered a deep gash to its abdomen. Forest and livestock department doctors are providing treatment at the scene. The incident occurred in the Shialyaghona hill area of Nayangpara, Ward 1 of Teknaf municipality. Forest officials said the elephant slipped and rolled down the cliff due to soft, rain-soaked soil while foraging on the hilltop.

Hindustan Times (India), July 11, 2026

Two persons were killed in separate attacks by wild elephants in Chhattisgarh's Raigarh district, taking the number of such fatalities in the state to three this week alone, forest officials said. The attacks occurred in the early hours of the day in the Chhal and Kapu forest ranges, they said. Panic broke out after a wild elephant entered the Talgaon village under the Kapu forest range, and in the chaos, one of the villagers, Shakuntala Bai (37), was killed by the tusker when she came running out of her house, Dharamjaigarh Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Jitendra Upadhyay said.

Rashmi Drolia, Times of India (India), July 11, 2026

Forest team that rushed to Talgaon village in Chhattisgarh's Raigarh district on Saturday found a heart-rending scene — a toddler sitting beside her critically injured mother, crying for help after a wild elephant had trampled the woman while the two were fleeing the animal. The 37-year-old woman later died in hospital, one of two people killed in separate elephant attacks in the district within hours. The deaths have taken the number of fatalities in elephant attacks in Chhattisgarh to three this week, highlighting the worrying human-elephant conflict in the state's northern forest belt.

The Telegraph India (India), July 10, 2026

The state forest department has decided to install solar-powered hanging fences along a stretch in the Kumargram block of Alipurduar district to curb human-elephant conflict in forest-fringe villages. The project will cover villages from Khoardanga to Dhowlajhora and Shiltong under the east division of the Buxa Tiger Reserve (BTR). While the identified area extends for about 27km, the department plans to install the solar hanging fence over a 21-kilometre-long stretch in the first phase. The project is estimated to cost around ₹65 lakh.

Asian Elephant News