Farmer trampled to death by wild elephant

By Dilip Jayasekara   

A farmer had been trampled to death by a wild elephant in the Madayakalalanda area in the early hours of last morning. The victim Hewa Hakuruge Upul Priyanga, 40, was a resident of Perakum Mawatha in Madayamalalanda in Ambalanthota Police area.   

Police said the villager had been hit by the jumbo that  roamed into his home garden when he attempted to drive it away. He had  died on admission to the Hambantota General Hospital.   

Residents of the area said the haphazard clearing of the jungle  by individuals receiving political patronage was going on unchecked, and  that the wild elephants roamed into the villages.

They pointed out that  vast areas of the jungle had been cleared under the pretext of  development projects, destroying the natural habitat of the wild  elephants.   

The Ambalantota Police are conducting further investigations.