Kendrapada: A 70-year-old man was allegedly dragged into Kharasrota river by a crocodile while he was boarding a boat in Rajkanika area of the district on Tuesday morning. The missing man was identified as Pareshwar Behera of Gangadharprasaddia village in Trailokyapur panchayat.
According to reports, Behera had left home to go to Ayatana market to buy groceries. He was preparing to cross the Kharasrota river by boat when a crocodile suddenly attacked him and dragged him into the river. Locals immediately launched a search for him. However, he had not been traced till the time of reporting.
According to divisional forest officer (DFO) Varadaraj Gaonkar, Rajnagar a joint search operation by the fire services and the forest department was underway to trace the missing man. He added that the forest department would provide an ex gratia of Rs 10 lakh to the victim’s family after due inquiry.
The incident is the latest in a series of human-crocodile conflicts in the region. A 46-year-old woman Suchitra Das of Damodarapatana village under Pattamundai block was killed on Aug 3 by a saltwater crocodile while she was taking bath in the flood-swollen Brahmani river.
Officials said estuarine crocodiles have claimed seven human lives in the past 17 months, 16 over the last three years and 32 in the past 51 months in and around Bhitarkanika National Park.