Video of human beings scaring a wild elephant goes viral: Internet annoyed

Assam: Animal-human conflict is fairly common. Videos of dangerous situations in which humans and animals have engaged in a terrifying tug of war are frequently shared. A video of an altercation between a human and an animal on X (previously Twitter) has infuriated many people once more. Parveen Kaswan, an Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer, shared a video of some men attempting to frighten an elephant with slippers.

 The event, which happened in Assam, has sparked new worries about interactions between people and wildlife. 

Watch the video here 

Identify the real animal here. Then these giants charge & we call them killers. Dont ever do this, it’s life threatening. Video is from Assam. pic.twitter.com/e1yltV4RQP

— Parveen Kaswan, IFS (@ParveenKaswan) December 7, 2023

In the video, a tusker is shown standing atop a upheaved area of land while a man below attempts to shoo the elephant away with a slipper. A few seconds later, additional men can be seen attempting to do the same. But as the video goes on, the tusker is seen lunging in the direction of the group. The animal retreats as the video comes to an end. 

“Identify the real animal here. Then these giants charge and we call them killers. Don't ever do this, it's life-threatening. Video is from Assam,” Kawan wrote alongside sharing the clip. 

Since Kaswan posted the video on Thursday, it has received over 1,300 likes and over 91,000 views. Online discussion has been spurred by the incident. Some people were shocked by the men's boldness, while others emphasized the dangers of startling a wild elephant.

People on the internet were outraged, at the same time, they were bewildered by the boldness of the humans trying to scare a giant wild elephant. 

Outraged over the visual, one user commented, “Why they are teasing him.” 

Another user commented, “RIP in advance for them. Om shanti.” 

Seeking clarity over the situation, one user said, “We need context, right ? Is it near a field /village? Are they trying tp protect their crops. Have to admit these folks don't look like farmers thought."

Another user slammed the humans and said for  scaring the elephant (translated from Hindi), “Leaving two-legged animals with demonic nature free like this is a matter of concern and fear for peace-loving creatures. The government administration should take strict action against such two-legged animals.”