A tourist had a narrow escape after being attacked by a wild tusker in Bandipur National Park, Gundlupet taluk of Chamarajanagar district.
According to forest officials, the incident occurred on Sunday on the national highway that cuts through the Bandipur forest. The tourist, reportedly from Kerala, had stopped to photograph a wild elephant eating tomatoes by the roadside.
The act provoked the animal, which suddenly charged at him, knocking him to the ground and attempting to trample him.
The man was pinned under the elephant’s foot before the animal retreated, allowing him to escape. He was rushed to hospital for treatment.
A widely shared video of the attack shows the elephant standing amid halted vehicles and onlookers before charging at the tourist, who was walking along the road. As the man tried to flee, he stumbled and fell, at which point the elephant stepped on him.
Retired Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Susanta Nanda posted on X, “This is not a wildlife moment—it’s a tragedy. Wild will be wild. Respect their space & power. They deserve their distance. Remember that a tusker’s charge is unstoppable. Stay away from them. It’s not worth losing one’s life for a photo. Life is more precious.”
IFS officer Parveen Kaswan said, “Such a tragic incident. Could have been avoided. There is a safe distance for every animal. We must always follow that.”
Bandipur is part of a wildlife corridor and a tourist destination. Human-elephant encounters are common here.
In February this year, an elephant chased two tourists after they tried to take a selfie with it. The pair managed to escape unharmed.
The risks are not confined to Bandipur.
In the Valparai Range of Coimbatore district’s Tiger Valley, 77 year old German tourist Michael Jurcen was killed in February after being attacked by an elephant while travelling on his motorbike. Jurcen reportedly ignored warnings from fellow commuters before attempting to cross a road where the animal was present.
Earlier this year, in Kerala, an elephant used in a religious festival injured at least 24 people, killing one. Footage from the event showed the elephant grabbing a man with its trunk, swinging him through the air, and throwing him to the ground.