Even as panic continues to prevail among locals at Alana in Niali block of Cuttack district after three more sheep were found deadon Sunday night, Cuttack district Collector Nirmal Chandra Mishra on Monday ordered for formation of a team to probe the mysterious deaths of sheep.
Mishra said the team comprising the local Tehsildar, police Inspector-in-Charge ad forest officials would probe the matter with the help of villagers. It is suspected hyenas or similar kind of animals from the nearest Bhanra forest sneak into the villages in night and kill the sheep. To find out the killer animal, CCTV cameras would also be installed at sensitive places, if needed, he said.
Cuttack (Rural) SP Madhab Sahoo said postmortem reports revealed that some wild animals killed the sheep. A Village Defence Guard comprising youths of the affected villages would be formed to prevent the menace. Action would be taken against those spreading rumours over the issue in social media platforms. “We will take the help of the Cyber Cell in this regard,” he added.
However, Fisheries and Animal Resources Development Minister Damodar Rout refuted the claims of a mysterious animal killing the sheep. It could be hyenas which killed them, he added. Rout further said the photo and video of a killer animal, which went viral on social media, is a rumour.