Narasinghpur: A tusker sustained critical injuries after it was shot at by a poacher at Chandragiri reserve forest on the fringes of Guptamanik village under Narsinghpur east forest circle range in Cuttack district, a report said Wednesday.
The matter came to the fore after locals noticed the tusker lying on road near Mahulmada village and writhing in pain. On being informed, forest officials led by assistant conservator of forests (ACF) Purna Chandra Guru, east circle ranger Abhiram Jena rushed to the spot and started treatment of the ailing animal with the help of veterinarians. However, the health condition of the tusker remained critical due to loss of excessive blood.
Preliminary inquiries indicated that the poacher might have shot the tusker to kill it for its ivory as forest officials have stopped regular patrolling of the forests in regular intervals due to the presence of Sundari tigress of Satkosia sanctuary in Narsinghpur forest.
According to villagers, the pachyderms are frequenting the villages on the fringes of the forests regularly during daytime over last few days and causing significant damage to their crops on their farmlands.
However, the forest officials have not done anything to alleviate their fear. It is claimed that the incident might have taken place three to four days back but the silence of the forest officials about its condition sparked surprise as well as anger among villagers.
When contacted, the ACF said the condition of the animal continued to remain critical despite veterinarians administering treatment. They are closely monitoring its condition which they hope will improve soon, he added.
PNN
