Elephant goes on a rampage in Varanasi: Injures mahout by throwing him to the ground; damages motorcycles and electricity poles.
Varanasi. During the historic Ramlila of the world famous Ramnagar in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, there was a stir when an elephant suddenly went out of control. On Sunday morning, the elephant brought for Ramlila near Panchavati Maidan suddenly became aggressive and picked up its mahout by its trunk and threw him on the ground. The elephant also tried to crush the mahout. The mahout was seriously injured in this attack. He has been admitted to BHU Trauma Center for treatment. After this the elephant damaged several motorcycles, a tempo, tin shed and electric poles parked nearby. There was chaos in the area after the incident. Police and forest department teams were busy controlling the elephant throughout the day, but could not achieve success till late night. Due to this, the proposed Ram-Ravana war drama could not be staged on Sunday.
Lifted the mahout by his trunk and threw him on the ground.
According to the information received, the incident took place around 10:35 am on Sunday morning around Panchavati Maidan in Ramnagar. One of the elephants brought from outside to organize Ramlila suddenly became aggressive. It is being told that the mahout was trying to control the elephant. Meanwhile, the elephant wrapped him in its trunk and threw him on the ground.
The elephant also tried to crush the mahout, but he somehow managed to save his life. He suffered serious injuries to his head, hands and legs in the attack. The people present at the spot made arrangements to immediately take the injured mahout to the hospital. After first aid, he was sent to BHU Trauma Center for better treatment.
Four bikes and tempo were damaged
The elephant’s aggressive behavior continued after attacking the mahout. He started damaging the motorcycles parked nearby with his trunk and feet. During this period, four bikes, a tempo and the tin shed of a nearby house were damaged.
The elephant also damaged an electric pole. It was told that there was a 33 KV power line on the pole. This created a dangerous situation in the surrounding area. Local people got scared due to the sudden incident and started moving towards safe places.
Considering the seriousness of the situation, the administration took immediate security measures.
Police closed roads, increased security in the area
As soon as information about the incident was received, police officers and a large number of soldiers reached the spot. On the instructions of ACP Kotwali Vijay Pratap Singh, movement of vehicles and people was stopped on the main road of Panchvati and Lanka Maidan.
The police tried to keep people away from the incident site by barricading. Nearby residents were also advised to remain alert. Special precautions were taken in view of the possibility of the elephant reaching the residential area.
The biggest challenge before the administration was to control the elephant safely without causing any additional casualties. For this, help of police, forest department and local mahouts was taken.
Even the local mahout could not control
Experienced mahouts from nearby areas were also called to pacify the uncontrollable elephant. He tried to control the elephant based on his experience, but the efforts were not successful.
The local team of forest department also reached the spot. However, special resources were needed to safely control the elephant. After this it was decided to call a team of experts from Gorakhpur Zoo.
The administration tried to confine the elephant around the dense garden located between Panchavati and Lanka Maidan, so that it could not move towards the populated area.
Team of experts arrived from Gorakhpur
A four-member expert team from Gorakhpur Zoo reached Varanasi to control the elephant. The team was led by Deputy Director Dr. Yogesh Pratap Singh.
The experts arrived with necessary medicines and tranquilizer guns. A rescue operation was launched at night to safely control the elephant.
The challenge before the experts was to reduce the elephant’s aggression and ensure the safety of the people present nearby. Officials prepared to take action as per the situation.
Ram-Ravan war could not take place
The biggest impact of this incident was on the historical Ramlila of Ramnagar. It was proposed to stage the important episode of Ram-Ravana war on Sunday. There was special enthusiasm for this among the devotees and spectators.
But in the area where the leela was to be organised, a security crisis arose due to the elephant going out of control. Earlier the possibility of starting the leela at seven in the evening was expressed. After this, information about the time being increased to eight o’clock came to light.
However, the elephant could not be controlled safely till late night. Ultimately the staging of the Ram-Ravana war had to be postponed. Only Aarti was performed to fulfill the tradition.
This unexpected development affected the continuity of Ramlila which had been going on for years.
The tradition of historical Ramlila got affected
Ramlila of Ramnagar, Varanasi is world famous for its ancient traditions and unique presentation. In this Ramlila, which has been organized for almost two centuries, episodes related to the life of Lord Ram are staged at different places.
The specialty of this event is that the artists bring alive the religious themes in traditional costumes. Elephants have also been traditionally used in Ramlila.
Disruption in the staging of historical Ramlila is considered extremely rare. According to the report, its tradition was also affected during the 1971 war and the Corona epidemic. Now the staging of the important event had to be postponed due to elephant violence.
Questions raised on security arrangements
The incident of Ramnagar has affected religious and religious people.