MP Hikes Compensation for Wild Animal Attack Fatalities to Rs 25 Lakh

Bhopal: The Madhya Pradesh government on Sunday hiked the compensation to the kin of those killed in wild animal attacks to Rs 25 lakh from Rs 8 lakh.

The announcement was made a day after an elephant trampled two men to death near the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve in Umaria district.

“We have decided to raise the compensation for the loss of lives due to wild animal attacks from Rs 8 lakh to 25 lakh. We have also covered the families of the two persons who were killed (in elephant attacks) in Umaria under it,” Chief Minister Mohan Yadav told PTI.

The more-than-three-fold rise came hours after forest minister Pradeep Ahirwar handed over compensation of Rs 8 lakh each to the victims’ families in Umaria district.

An elephant, captured on Sunday evening, had killed Ramratan Yadav (50) in Devra village, some 10 kilometres from the tiger reserve, when he went to answer nature's call the previous day.

It also trampled to death Bhairav Kol (35) in Brahe village in the buffer zone of Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve and then injured Malu Sahu (32) in Banka just outside the protected forest.

The reserve is now under the spotlight over the death of 10 elephants in about 72 years. 

(Except the headline, this story is not edited by Republic and is published from a syndicated feed)