A security guard attached to Bharathiar University, Coimbatore, died while being chased by a wild elephant on the campus on Thursday.
The deceased has been identified as N. Shanmugam, 57, who hailed from Nehru Nagar near Mettupalayam.
Forest Department officials said the cause of death, whether he died in the attack of the elephant or died of shock while being chased by the animal, would be known after the post-mortem examination.
Another security guard, Suresh Kumar, and an Emeritus Professor attached to the Department of Environmental Sciences also suffered injuries while trying to escape from the elephant, they said.
According to the Forest Department, frontline staff received an alert about the presence of a tusker on the university campus around 10.30 a.m. The staff drove the elephant back to the forest.
During further surveillance on the campus, the staff came to know that three persons, including Shanmugam, suffered injuries after being chased by the same elephant around 11.15 a.m.
It was found out that Shanmugam and Suresh had gone to a place near the Department of Environmental Sciences, after they were told about the presence of the tusker. The elephant charged at them and they ran to seek shelter. Shanmugam was found unconscious and he died while being rushed to a hospital.
Suresh and Emeritus Professor P. Lakshmanaperumalsamy, who was standing near his Department, suffered minor injuries while running away from the elephant.
The place of elephant attack on the university campus is situated around 650 metres away from the forest boundary, falling under Maruthamalai beat of the Coimbatore forest range. Frontline staff of the Department were attempting to drive the elephant back to the forest till evening.
The Forest Department stated that it had issued to a notice to the university to take measures for the safety of its staff, students and workers from wild animals as the campus lies close to the forest.
