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Conservation officials say they are working to prevent the herd from turning back
Published : 14 Apr 2025, 07:17 PM
A herd of wild elephants that wreaked havoc in the Korean Export Processing Zone (KEPZ) area of Chattogram’s Anwara has moved back towards the forest.
Officials from the Wildlife Management and Nature Conservation Division said three elephants crossed the Shankha River towards Banshkhali over the past four days.
“Two crossed on Thursday and the last one crossed on Sunday around 4am,” Deputy Conservator of Forest Abu Naser Mohammad Yasin Newaz told bdnews24.com.
“Another elephant from the herd had already left earlier,” he added.
As the elephants left on their own, authorities cannot say for certain that they will not return.
“They will try to come back again. But we are working to prevent that from happening,” said Naser.
KEPZ, spanning nearly 2,500 acres, or 1011.71 hectares, of hilly land across the Barauthan union in Karnaphuli Upazila and the Boirag Union in Anwara, began operations in 2006–2007.
Elephant activity has increased in the Dayang Hill area since 2012–13.
While sightings were reported before, residents and forest officials said it was less frequent.
By late 2018, a group of elephants had taken up permanent residence in the KEPZ area.
According to locals, four elephants inhabit the area and are responsible for the destruction, leaving residents in constant fear.
The elephants frequently raid the area, often at night, in search of rice paddy and banana groves, as well as other food sources.
For years, these nocturnal “rampages” have devastated villages across several unions, including Bara Uthan in Karnafuli Upazila and Boirag, Barkhain, Battali and Barshat in Anwara Upazila.
Beyond agricultural losses, the toll on human life has become a grim reality.
In recent years, multiple residents—including women and children—have been killed.
In the last seven months alone, six people have died from elephant attacks.
One such incident occurred on the night of Mar 21, when a wild elephant entered a home in the Shah Mirpur area of Karnafuli Upazila.
During the attack, the animal knocked down a three-month-old child with its trunk.
Earlier, on Sept 23, 2024, two individuals— Md Kashem, 60, and Rehana Begum, 38 — were killed in attacks in Anwara’s Boirag Union.
The list of tragedies stretches back years.
On Jan 7, 2020, a 70-year-old man was trampled to death in the Battal Nurpara area of Anwara Upazila.
Local outrage has led to a series of protests, including road blockades, human chains, and the submission of formal memorandums demanding action.
On Mar 22 and again on Mar 27, residents shut down traffic at the KEPZ gate on Anwara PAB Road, urging authorities to remove the elephants.
Wildlife officials said there were four adult elephants—two male and two female—in the KEPZ area.
Deputy Conservator Naser said the elephants were drawn to the KEPZ mainly for water, as they also face food shortages there.
“There is a water reservoir in KEPZ, and elephants feel comfortable around water,” he said.
Naser pointed out that there are only five to six water sources in the 16,000-hectare reserved forest areas of Banshkhali and Chunati while at least 30 are needed to support wildlife.
“If there were enough reservoirs in the forest, the elephants would not come to KEPZ,” he said.
He added that a trained Elephant Response Team (ERT) is stationed in the area.
“We’ve now sent them across the river,” said Naser. “The ERT members, in coordination with the staff of the South Forest Division, are speaking with residents of Pukuria in Banshkhali, instructing them to drive the elephants back if they attempt to return.”
