Bhawanipatna: In an untoward incident, one more elephant died near Jakama village under Karlapat Wildlife Sanctuary limits in Kalahandi district Friday afternoon, a forest department official informed.
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The latest jumbo death took the total toll to four in the last 12 days.
The exact cause of death of the pachyderm has not been ascertained yet. The contaminated water in a nearby nullah within the Karlapat Wildlife Sanctuary could be a probable cause of the deaths, principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF) Odisha Sashi Paul speculated.
“All the deaths were reported from near the nullah. So, it is suspected that some kind of a bacterial disease might have caused the deaths,” the PPCF stated.
“We have already taken a serious cognizance of the matter and the area is being sanitised. We have also taken preventive measures to keep other elephants and cattle away from that area of the jungle so that the bacteria do not spread anymore,” Paul added.
In a similar vein, deputy director of Veterinary department in Kalahandi district Dharmananda Mohanty said, “Initial reports suggest some kind of infectious disease, most probably Septicemia. However, we have sent the samples to Bhubaneswar to ascertain the exact cause.”
Notably, the carcass of an adult jumbo was found at the Karlapat Wildlife Sanctuary Friday morning. Likewise, the carcasses of two more elephants were found at the same spot February 1 and 8.
PNN