Sambalpur/Bhubaneswar, June 12: The carcasses of three elephants were found in Pravasuni reserve forest range near Asurkhol village in Deogarh district today.
All three were female elephants - two adults and a calf.
During the last three years, more than 200 elephants have died in the state, causing severe concern among wildlife lovers and forest department officials.
"The reason behind the deaths of the elephants is yet to be ascertained. Experts from the Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) will conduct the autopsy of the elephants," said Deogarh divisional forest officer B. Biswasi. Forest officials suspect the elephants might have died around 10 to 12 days ago.
Some women of Asurkhol village, who had gone to the forest, spotted the dead elephants and informed the forest officials upon which the forest official rushed to the site.
Incidentally, a female adult elephant died in the Pravasuni forest range on Tuesday.
Despite several initiatives taken by the state government to curb elephant deaths, official statistics revealed that of the 200 jumbos that died in the last three years, 35 died due to poaching, poisoning and deliberate electrocution.
In the first week of this month, cops arrested nine members of an elephant poaching gang in Boudh district and seized two tusks cut into eight pieces, three countrymade guns and gunpowder from the accused. The state crime branch took over the case from Boudh police for further investigation.
Though the state government claimed to have spent around Rs 42 crore for pachyderms in the last three years, elephant deaths continue to be a major concern. "The state government has also implemented a five-year programme for the development of 14 dedicated elephant corridors. Anti-poaching units along with an anti-smuggling squad are being deployed at vulnerable places," said a forest official.
The 2015 census conducted by the state government found 1,954 elephants in the state.
Tiger spotted
A tiger has been reportedly spotted in Juniyani forest near Lefripada in Sundargarh district. The divisional forest officer of Sundargarh, Arun Kumar Mishra, said: "We are now sure about the presence of a tiger in the forest on the basis of pugmarks. Its presence could not be traced earlier due to the absence of camera traps in the forest."
