Odisha: Third tusker dies of electrocution in three days, officials suspect poaching attempt

Bhubaneshwar: A middle-aged tusker succumbed to death after coming in contact with a live wire allegedly laid by a poacher in Odisha’s Angul district on Saturday barely two days after a pair of female elephants met the same fate in Keonjhar district. Officials said the live wire was laid by a poacher in the forest area about 500 meter away from Jagannathpur beat house of Pampasar range of Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary in Angul district. The regional chief conservator of forest, Joga Nanda said Satkosia divisional forest officer Saroj Panda and assistant conservator of forest Subhendu Behera reached the site after receiving information and launched a probe into the incident. In a similar incident on August 25, two female elephants were electrocuted on the premises of Krishi Vigyan Kendra under Sadar Forest Range in Keonjhar district. Forest department officials have launched a manhunt to apprehend poachers who laid the live wire. Officials said though several persons have been detained for questioning, the actual poacher is yet to be identified. They said that at least three elephants were killed in Satkosia sanctuary in June. The forest division personnel had exhumed the skeleton of an elephant from Gopapura forest range and later the news of the death of another ailing elephant came to the fore. Another elephant was found dead at Satkosia Kusakhali forest in Angul district on June 28. Recently, Odisha’s forest and environment minister P K Amat had informed the Assembly that as many as 63 elephants were electrocuted and died between 2017 and July, 2022. He said as many as 784 elephants have died in 10 years between December 2, 2013 and 2021-22 due to different reasons. Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.