Cuttack: The five human skulls found at Nuapatna in Tigria police limits have been sent to the SCB Medical College here for tests to ascertain whether they were leftovers from a cremation ground or belonged to those killed as part of a human sacrifice ritual.

Cuttack (rural) police superintendent Madhab Chandra Sahoo on Thursday said the skulls had been given to the forensic and toxicology department of SCB for determination of their origin, sex and age.

"We will proceed further with our investigation after the forensic study report is available," Sahoo said.

The police said few children stumbled upon a gunny bag while playing near the abandoned Sri Jagannath Spinning Mill complex on Tuesday. The children opened the bag and found five human skulls in it. On getting information from the kids' parents, the police seized the skulls.

Preliminary investigation indicated that four of the five skulls had been damaged by fire suggesting that they were leftover of bodies consigned to flames at a cremation ground. The other skull appeared to be intact.

"There should be no misgivings that the five skulls were remnants of a serial killing or any other crime," Sahoo said, adding that, "if the forensic report suggests involvement of offence, it will be probed from that angle to bring the crime to light".

Sahoo said the reports indicated that the skulls together in a gunny bag could be the handiwork of a mentally retarded person, who had been spotted collecting skulls from the cremation ground. "The Tigiria police station inspector-in-charge has been asked to locate the person and ascertain the veracity of the reports," he said.

Tigiria police station inspector-in-charge Sushant Kumar Satpathy said the spinning mill had been closed five years ago and abandoned since then. The skulls were found in an isolated part outside the mill's staff quarters.