A 60-year-old man was killed in a suspected elephant attack while he was out on his routine morning walk near Doddabele village, off Mysuru Road, on the outskirts of Bengaluru, on Monday morning.
The deceased has been identified as Nagaraju, a resident of Anchepalya. The incident occurred around 5 am near Vaarahi Vivarea apartments, about a kilometre from Rajarajeshwari Medical College and Hospital.
Nagaraju was found badly injured on the road and was rushed to RajaRajeswari Medical College and Hospital. He later succumbed to his injuries.
While locals and those who reached the spot suspect that an elephant attacked him, the incident was not directly witnessed. N.R. Kamble, Range Forest Officer of Kaggalipura Range, said the exact cause of death would be established only after the postmortem.
The presence of an elephant in the area, however, was captured on CCTV. Footage from Vaarahi Vivarea apartments reportedly showed an elephant moving along Malhar Avenue Road at around 5.11 am, around the time of the incident. Security guards at the spot had also reportedly seen the elephant but did not witness it attacking Nagaraju.
According to forest officials, the elephant is believed to have entered the area from Bannerghatta Wildlife Sanctuary. Forest teams were deployed to track the animal.
Kamble said elephants usually move from Bannerghatta towards the BM Kaval forest and return after a few days, but sightings in this particular area are rare. The last reported sightings in the locality were around four to five years ago, he said.
Residents said Nagaraju was a regular morning walker and would usually pass through the area at around 5.30 am. He had recently retired after working at a nearby factory.
