Bhubaneswar: Sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik was today admitted to a hospital following an injury after a scuffle with an unidentified youth at the ongoing International Sand Art Festival in Chandrabhaga in Puri district.
Pattnaik was rushed to the district headquarters hospital in Puri for treatment following the incident.
Pattnaik said the youth attempted to snatch his wrist watch after grabbing his left arm. "He attacked me when I tried to defend and later fled from the spot," he said.
"Since there was a big crowd and people were busy taking selfies, we could not trace the miscreant," Pattnaik said.
Meanwhile, BJD MP Baijayant Panda expressed shock over the attack on the sand artist.
Patnaik is the brand ambassador of the five-day long International Sand Art Festival inaugurated on December 1 at Chandrabhaga beach near the famous Sun Temple in Konark. Around 70 participants, including 18 women and foreign nationals from different countries like Germany, Mexico, Ghana, Singapore, Canada, Spain, Sri Lanka and Russia have participated in the festival.