A team of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) researchers has found a skeleton of a large animal during exploration work at Suabarai village under Poparanga gram panchayat in Puri district.
While locals suspect that the bones found on Wednesday were of a huge elephant, the ASI researchers have brushed aside it.
“It is publicly talked that bones of an elephant have been found. But It is untrue. We are yet to get any clear picture on this. We anticipate it to be the remains of a cow or a buffalo,” said ASI Deputy Director Jeevan Kumar Patnaik.
He said identity of the animal would be established only after examination. Researchers from the Deccan College of Post Graduate and Research Institute, Pune will arrive here in two days to conduct the examination, he said.
The ASI has resumed its second phase exploration since December 22 last year. The researchers have so far found oval-shaped places, earthen utensils, horns of antelopes and other things possibly of the Chalcolithic or Copper Age.
Earlier on June 6, 2014, an ASI team had found skeletal remains of birds and wild animals, teeth, horns and earthen chulha at the same site, which indicated possible existence of a human civilization in the area over 3,000 years back to the Chalcolithic or Copper Age.
Suabarai village is located on the southern-end off Dhauli hills on the bank of Daya river.