Haridwar, June 8 -- A growing elephant scare has gripped the Laldhang-Shyampur border area of Haridwar district, with local residents demanding immediate relief from the authorities. For the past several days, elephant movement has been reported in the Laldhang area, with farmers complaining of damage to wheat and sugarcane crops in their fields. On Friday evening, an elephant appeared on the Najibabad-Haridwar highway near Gaindhikhata village in Laldhang, disrupting vehicular traffic for nearly half an hour. Passersby, upon spotting the elephant on the highway stretch, stopped their vehicles and waited for the animal to move away. "As soon as we received information about the elephant on the highway, a forest team was rushed to the spot. We managed to drive the elephant back into the adjacent forest area and resumed traffic flow. No damage was reported. We are also maintaining vigilance at several other sites, including the one where the elephant appeared last evening in Laldhang," said forest beat officer Amit Saini. Tajendra Singh, a farmer from Katebadh village, said an elephant had entered his agricultural field on Thursday evening and damaged a section of his standing crop. "When I tried to scare it away by starting my tractor, the elephant charged aggressively toward the vehicle. It eventually struck the tractor, tipping it sideways. I took shelter in a nearby crop godown and alerted fellow villagers," said Singh. Many farmers from Laldhang and surrounding villages have reported elephant sightings and demanded safety measures from the forest department. "We've informed forest officials about the increased elephant movement in our villages. Farmers are now afraid to step out into their fields, especially during dawn and dusk," said Anil Kumar Sharma, a resident of Laldhang. The local forest department has intensified patrolling in the affected villages. "Yes, there has been an increase in elephant movement in this range. As soon as we receive information, a patrol team is dispatched immediately. Affected farmers are also compensated for crop losses caused by wild animals," said Chidiyapur forest range officer Mahesh Sharma....