Three farmers in Odisha’s Kendrapara district were left devastated on Sunday after losing 73 buffaloes within an hour while the animals crossed the Galia river, raising suspicion of poisoning.
Carcasses were recovered on Monday and samples sent to the Regional Disease Diagnostic Laboratory, Calcutta, and the Phulnakhara facility in Cuttack. This was the first case of mass bovine deaths in Odisha.
“We are ruined. Till Saturday night, they were absolutely fine. They had no health problems. We had fed them on Sunday morning before they stepped into the river,” said Ganesh Das, who lost about 30 buffaloes.
Pramod Biswal, another farmer, said: “Every day, I used to sell 20 litres of milk and earn around ₹800. Each buffalo costs around ₹80,000 to ₹90,000. They were our main source of income.”
He described how the animals suddenly began to flail midstream. “We were watching when they appeared to be struggling to move forward. Then they drowned one after another. Later, we retrieved their bodies from the river.”
The Galia river is a tributary of the Brahmani. Villagers suspect the deaths were caused by poison in the river, allegedly used for shrimp catching. “Shrimp catchers use a variety of poisons,” said a villager.
Another villager linked the deaths to pesticide use. “We have paddy fields close to the river. Most farmers use pesticides. It is possible the buffaloes fed on stalks before jumping into the river,” he said.
Odisha Milk Farmers’ Association president Rabi Behera blamed the “shrimp mafia”. He told The Telegraph: “The buffaloes died as they consumed poison thrown in the nearby water bodies by the shrimp mafia. The government should give ₹1 lakh compensation for each buffalo. We have already intimated the minister of fisheries and animal husbandry, Gokulananda Mallick. If the government fails to act, we will hit the streets.”
District veterinary officer Manoj Pattnaik said: “An expert team has already visited the area and collected samples. The samples will be tested to ascertain the reason behind the deaths.”