Elephant found dead in Kuldiha, tusks missing

BALASORE: The carcass of an elephant was found inside the Kuldiha sanctuary in Balasore district on Sunday. Sources said the animal had sneaked into the forest from Dalma sanctuary in Jharkhand.The 40-year-old elephant was 9 feet tall. The last time the animal was spotted inside the sanctuary was on December 13. While the wildlife experts suspect it to be a case of poaching as its tusks are cut and stolen, forest officials ruled out any such possibility. DFO Kedar Swain said neither there was any injury mark on its body, nor did they find any blood stains in the forest. “Post-mortem report suggests that it was suffering from Bronco Pneumonia which caused its death,” he clarified. The elephant had strayed into Kuldiha on October 30 and was followed by a herd of around 100 elephants later last month. The herd wreaked havoc in and around Nilagiri area damaging paddy crops and destroying houses.Admitting the tusks had been stolen, the DFO said efforts were on to nab the culprits. “The Wildlife Crime Control Board has been intimated about it and a team of forest officials deployed to recover the tusks and arrest those involved in the crime,” he added.Four elephants have died in the Kuldiha forest in the last two years.  Last year, three jumbos were found dead inside the forest.The sanctuary, located in Nilagiri sub-division of the district, is spread over an area of 272.75 sq km. It is linked with the Similipal Tiger Reserve (STR).Herd ravages crops in Ganjam villageBerhampur: Residents of Sutumusar village under Belaguntha block have been spending sleepless nights for the last two days over presence of an elephant herd in the area.The herd comprises nine jumbos including a tusker and two calves. The animals have damaged thatched houses and standing crops in eight acres of land in the village. The villagers alleged that despite repeated reminders, the forest officials are yet to initiate any measure to drive away the animals.