Omkar returns to Pernem, creates panic across villages

Panaji/Mapusa: The re-entry of the tusker, Omkar, into Torxem in Pernem on Sunday morning has sparked widespread alarm among local farmers and residents.

The pachyderm was guided to Maharashtra by the Goa forest department. After a brief stint in Digne village in Maharashtra, the elephant returned to the Goa border, as sources said that villagers in Maharashtra denied the animal safe passage.

The gentle giant resultantly turned back, immediately resuming a trail of destruction that includes flattened crops and damage to parked vehicles in Goa.

The elephant’s presence during the crucial cultivation season has left cashew farmers in despair.

Panic has also spread to the neighbouring village of Tamboxem in Pernem. “Villagers have grown Rabi crops such as chilli, millets, and brinjal. We fear that he may travel to Tamboxem and attack our crops or damage property,” a panch member from Tamboxem said.

Locals are now demanding that state government intervene by deploying expert mahouts to capture and relocate the animal to a permanent sanctuary in Karnataka.
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