Mother Bear, Cub Run Over In Odisha

Sambalpur: Barely five days after a tusker was killed after being run over by a train in Sambalpur division, a female bear and its cub were killed in an accident on Podabalanda-Badmal road under Rairakhol forest division in the district in on Saturday.

As per reports, the mother bear and its cub were crossing the road in the early hours today when an unknown vehicle hit them killing the animals on the spot.

The mother bear and the cub's age was stated to be around 20 and 2 years, respectively.

Meanwhile, forest officials reached the spot on receiving information and sent the bodies for post-mortem. They have also initiated a probe.

On Monday, an elephant was killed after it was run over by Puri-Surat Express train near Bhabanipali between Hatibari and Maneswar Railway stations under Sambalpur division.

Following the accident, six wheels of the train engine got derailed. However, no passengers on-board or the railway crew members were hurt in the incident.

Later, Harishankar Upadhyay, the Odisha Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) wrote to Odisha government seeking disciplinary action against Sambalpur Sadar Range Officer for dereliction of duty.

Upadhyay cited that despite possessing a full-fledged squad to track the wild elephants straying into habitations and railway lines, the Range Officer had failed to conduct enough patrolling, resulting in the death of many elephants over the year.