Durgapur, March 3: The forest department in Bankura has been escorting Madhyamik and other examinees to test centres in several villages for fear of elephant attacks.

The department has formed groups - hula parties - to escort the examinees in Borjora, Beliatore and Sonamukhi. Officials said the parties would also accompany students on their way back from schools over the next few months.

Although the Madhyamik ended today, tests are going on in colleges. The higher secondary exams will begin later this month.

The decision to form the hula parties was taken following several appeals from parents.

"Parents and students living in villages surrounding the forests had been worried about how to reach the test centres. The stretches from the villages to the centres pass through jungles where wild elephants are often seen. So, we decided to escort examinees and students to and from schools and colleges," said Sudhir Chandra Das, the divisional forest officer of Bankura (north).

Each hula party formed by the forest department has at least 10 local youths armed with fire torches and crackers. Officials said each hula party member was paid Rs 208 a day to accompany a group of examinees from a particular village to an exam centre and back.

The number of hula parties escorting the students would depend on the length of the forested stretch.

Man-elephant conflict is a regular problem in several parts of Bankura, Purulia and West Midnapore, where herds migrate from the Dalma range in Jharkhand. The herds stray away to the neighbouring villages in search of food, and destroy crops and property, often resulting in deaths of villagers.

In the Sonamukhi forest range, three persons have been killed in elephant attacks since October.