Bhubaneswar: The body of a youth who had gone missing while grazing cattle near the Kharasrota River in Tandara village under Panikoili police station limits of Jajpur district was recovered on Tuesday morning.
The deceased has been identified as Sidhant Mallick, a resident of Tandara village.
According to reports, Sidhant had taken his cattle to graze near the river on Monday afternoon. He is believed to have entered the river to wash his clothes, during which he suddenly went missing.
Eyewitnesses at the scene claimed that a crocodile dragged Sidhant into the water, leaving little time for anyone to react.
Following the incident, personnel from the local police, forest department, and fire brigade launched a search operation. However, the search was halted in the evening due to low visibility and resumed on Tuesday morning. His body was recovered shortly thereafter.
Despite eyewitness accounts suggesting a crocodile attack, forest officials have expressed skepticism.
“There were no deep wounds on the body to conclusively confirm a crocodile attack,” an official from the forest department said.
The police have seized the body and sent it for post-mortem to determine the exact cause of death.
Further investigation is underway.
