Kendrapara, Oct. 19: Two persons were injured when a wild boar attacked them at Iswarpur village near the Bhitarkanika National Park.

The injured - Rabindra Behera, 45, and Malay Behera, 24 - were working on the farm when the animal attacked them. They are undergoing treatment at a government-run hospital and are out of danger, said an official. The forest department is bearing the entire cost of their treatment.

The duo would get compensatory allowance in accordance with rules for animal attack cases, the official said.

There have been reports of wild boars straying into farmlands and causing damage. The forest department has intensified night vigil to ward off the straying animals, said forest range officer Akshaya Kumar Nayak.

The department has taken an initiative to protect both humans and wildlife. It has erected galvanised steel fencing at strategic spots to stop animal intrusion. It has also trained local residents to keep night vigil in villages to drive away stray wild boars.

Besides, the department has constituted squads for night vigil, who maintain watch in villages in the vicinity of the forest, using firecrackers and drums to drive the boars away. The villagers have also been advised to avoid movement during the night and early morning when the animals mostly make their way to crop fields in the villages.

These animals often intrude the crop fields and ravage the standing crops, causing immense loss to farmers.

Hordes of wild boars have made their way into human habitations. The animals vandalized crops in the agriculture fields. Local residents are frightened of possible attacks by the animals.

Rangani village resident Prabhat Jana said the villagers are panic-stricken and feel that their safety has been jeopardized in the wake of frequent attacks and trespassing by wild animals into the villages.