Dhenkanal: Panic gripped the people after a killer tusker which had claimed many lives in the past was spotted near the Gailo bus stand under Odapada block in this district Friday evening.
Alarmed over the sighting of the elephant, people ran to safety. However, no casualties or loss of properties were reported during the period.
The tusker, that had killed five people in the Talcher region a few days back, is said to have strayed into the area after crossing the Brahmani River.
The forest officials who had faced an angry backlash from the people at that time of the incident called a tranquiliser team from Bhubaneswar and trimmed the animal’s tusks. Later, the tusker made its way to Meramandali area and pulled down a house, forest officials said.
When contacted, assistant conservator of forests (ACF) Jeetendranath Das said as per reports the tusker is mostly seen moving around the Dihadola area in Parjang block, in some villages in Angul and Odapada block in Dhenkanal district. Forest officials are keeping a close watch on its movement, he said.
PNN
