Kerala: Wild elephant critically injures man on road
A wild elephant attacked 48-year-old Prakash in Kerala's Kollam district early Thursday, leaving him critically injured.
The incident happened as he was heading home from work near Kulathupuzha.
Locals managed to scare the elephant off and rushed Prakash to the hospital, where he's still in serious condition.
102 human deaths due to elephant attacks since 2019 (2019-2026)
Sadly, this isn't rare—Kerala has seen 102 people killed by elephants since 2019 (2019-2026), and across India, nearly 2,900 people have died in similar conflicts over the past five years (roughly 2021-2026).
Odisha tops the list for fatalities.
It's not just humans at risk either; Kerala lost over 700 elephants over the past six years (roughly 2020-2026), with some deaths linked to electrocution and vehicle collisions as people and wildlife struggle to share space.
Need for effective measures to mitigate human-elephant conflict
This story highlights how tough it is for both people and elephants as their worlds collide more often.
It's a reminder that finding safer ways for humans and wildlife to coexist matters—for everyone's safety.