ANGUL: A herd comprising 34 elephants was spotted near Turanga village on the outskirts of Angul town on Sunday causing panic among locals.
The herd comprising eight tuskers and six calves destroyed paddy crop. The elephants however did not enter the town or the village. At present the herd is roaming near Ankula village near Nalco plant. Sources said the herd had sneaked into the area from the Ganthigadia forest in Talcher range. A resident of Turanga said elephant herds arrive in the area every year. But this time the size of the herd is huge. Sadar forest ranger Harmohan Nayak said forest staff managed to keep the herd off Angul town.
“As soon as we received information that a herd has arrived on the outskirts of Angul town, we rushed to the area and spotted it in a paddy field near Turanga. We managed to drive the elephants out of Turanga village. So far there is no report of any damage to houses as the herd did not enter any village or Angul town,” he said.