12-Foot Crocodile Strays Into Odisha village, Sparks Panic During Durga Puja
This is not an isolated incident. Repeated sightings of crocodiles in human settlements of Pattamundai and Rajnagar regions have fuelled growing fears among locals.
Bhubaneswar: Festive fervour turned into panic in Kendrapara district of Odisha after a giant saltwater crocodile, nearly 12 feet long, strayed into Balipada village under Pattamundai Municipality on Tuesday evening, startling residents returning from Durga Puja celebrations.
Eyewitnesses said the reptile was spotted sprawled across the main road in Ward No. 7, blocking passage as it stretched almost the entire width of the lane. Alarmed villagers initially mistook the dark shape for a fallen log until torchlight revealed the massive crocodile.
“It was huge, lying right across the road. Within moments, everyone gathered in shock. Fortunately, it slithered back into a nearby canal after villagers raised loud shouts,” a local resident recounted.
The reptile, believed to have strayed in from the Brahmani River through a network of rain-fed canals, disappeared into the waters after several tense minutes.
This is not an isolated incident. Repeated sightings of crocodiles in human settlements of Pattamundai and Rajnagar regions have fuelled growing fears among locals. Heavy rains and flooding in recent weeks are being blamed for driving the reptiles out of their natural habitats into villages and farmlands.
Earlier this year, a 6-foot-long female crocodile was rescued from a backyard fishing pond in Endulapur village of Rajnagar block and released into a creek near Bhitarkanika National Park, home to India’s largest population of saltwater crocodiles.
Kendrapara, part of the Bhitarkanika ecosystem, has long been a hotspot for human-crocodile encounters. Conservationists warn that frequent flooding, combined with expanding human activity along riverbanks, is intensifying such conflicts.