At least 15 people have been killed by marauding pachyderms in the state in the last five years.
" Despite efforts by the forest department, there has been no significant improvement in the constant depletion of forest cover due to the practice of Jhum cultivation in the Garo hills region of the state," Meghalaya Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (PCCF) V K Nautiyal said.
He said the destruction of natural habitat of elephants have forced them to wander into human habitations, where they get their fodder in the form of crops.
According to latest estimates, there are around 1,285 elephants in the Garo hills region. Scattered herds are often spotted in and around human habitats, who terrorise people, damage their houses, croplands and even trample humans.
Two elephants from Garo hills region had wandered into Bansali village Assam&aposs Dhubri district Friday, and trampled five persons of a family after damaging their house.