Berhampur: The carcass of a blackbuck, an endangered antelope, was found at a roadside in the Digapahandi forest range in Odisha’s Ganjam district, an official said.
The endangered animal might have died after being hit by a vehicle, Digapahandi forest range officer Kanhu Charan Patnaik said.
The carcass of the four-year-old male blackbuck was recovered from Bhaliajhola, around 40 km from Berhampur city, he said.
A post-mortem examination of the carcass was conducted, and the report is awaited, the forest official said.
Ganjam district blackbuck protection committee president Amulya Upadhyaya said, “The animal might have died in a road accident, as it might come out of its habitat in search of water. Major water bodies in the habitats have become dry due to heat conditions.”
The blackbuck is a Schedule-1 animal according to the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972 (amended in 1992), he said.
Ganjam is the only district in the state, where blackbucks are sighted, and according to a census conducted in February, the antelopes numbered 7,745.
“The people of the region believe that sighting of a blackbuck in a paddy field is harbinger of luck for them,” Upadhyaya added.
PTI
