A gharial at Tata Steel Zoological Park. Telegraph picture

Jamshedpur, June 22: Residents of the city and its adjoining areas have double responsibility now — their own safety and that of two missing Gangetic gharials of Tata Steel Zoological Park (TSZP)!

Reason: the missing zoological park gharials have been spotted today in Subernarekha waters near Sidhgora and Tulsi Nagar near Pipla, about 30km from the steel city, but the zoo authorities can retrieve them only after water recedes.

With limited resources and water still at a considerable height, the gharials can only be rescued after the water-level goes down substantially in the next few days, said zoo authorities.

“Unless the water-level recedes, there is nothing much that can be done. All that we can do is wait patiently for the animals to be spotted well enough to be rescued from the water,” said M.S. Jain, the director of TSZP.

The residents of Sidhgora and Tulsi Nagar have been asked to inform the zoo authorities if they find the life of the animal concerned is in any kind of danger.

“It is possible that some harm may be done to the gharials, particularly by local people, if they float on the surface. Therefore, a strong message has been sent across to inform us about developments, if any,” added Jain.

A team of zoo officials will be sent to Sidhgora for survey tomorrow morning for a verification and possible ways of rescuing the amphibian.

The jail officials are, however, clueless, about the location of Tulsi Nagar.

Jain said: “A person called up from Tulsi Nagar saying that a Gangetic gharial was seen there. We are clueless about the location of Tulsi Nagar. None of our officials and staff are aware of this place.”

All four Gangetic gharials and the lone crocodile went missing from the zoo after incessant rains on Wednesday gushed inside the premises, setting the amphibians free from the enclosure, an uncovered cage with a two feet trench separating it from the boundary wall.