Research scholar killed in elephant attack on Tamil Nadu institute campus

The deceased scholar Vishal Shrimal, 23, a native of Rajasthan, had been at the research centre for only a week. He was attacked by the elephant roaming on the campus right around the time he and his friends were walking to their room after having their dinner Tuesday evening.

Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu): A research scholar died early Wednesday after he was trampled by an elephant roaming on the campus of Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History (Sacon) near Coimbatore a day earlier.

The deceased scholar Vishal Shrimal, 23, a native of Rajasthan, had been at the research centre for only a week. He was attacked by the elephant roaming on the campus right around the time he and his friends were walking to their room after having their dinner Tuesday evening. While the two friends were able to escape, the elephant charged at Vishal and trampled him leaving him with grave internal injuries.

Vishal was admitted to the nearby Kottathurai Government Hospital. where doctors found that the victim had suffered severe injuries in the hip and chest area. They administered first aid and recommended further treatment at a specialised hospital. Following it, Vishal was brought to a private hospital in Saibaba Colony here where he died at 4.30 am on Wednesday.

Regarding the incident, the forest department officials said, "As soon as the incident took place, the forest department staff immediately went there and chased the elephant into the forest area. They also brought the student to the hospital and monitored the treatment. However, the student died early morning. Since Salim Ali Bird Research Center, a central government agency, is located in a forest area, we have advised that no one there should go out unnecessarily at night."

The incident, officials said, had taken place even though scholars had already been warned against venturing out in the dark. "We have also advised that none of the people here should move outside their rooms and research centre premises in the evenings.