Herd of 40 elephants near CCL mines triggers panic in Ramgarh; vigilance stepped up

Ramgarh: A herd of around 40 elephants was found roaming near Central Coalfields Limited mines in Jharkhand's Ramgarh district, triggering panic among miners and villagers and prompting mine managers to step up vigilance to prevent human-animal conflict, a forest department official said on Sunday.

The general manager of CCL's Kuju area mines, RK Sinha, said an alert has been sounded for Karma, Ara and Sarubera projects. "Night shift workers have been asked to remain vigilant," he said.

Also Read: Fake drugs: Karnataka cancels 16 licenses, suspends 8 including that of Pfizer depot


Bateshwar Paswan, the forest range officer who led a quick response team on Saturday night, said elephants have been camping in the area and the herd may move to the mines.

“Despite our attempts to drive them away, the elephants are still camping in the human habitat zone and close to the coal mine,” the forest official said.

The Kuju coal belt, which is close to dense forests, has witnessed frequent human-elephant conflict in recent months. In December 2025, four people were killed by elephants in Ara, while a villager was trampled to death by elephants in Sugia village close to Karma Project.

Also Read: Need well-structured policies, community participation to address climate change: President Murmu