Dikhyaa Mohanty 
An ODRAF boat, which was pressed into service for rescue of the stranded elephant from Mahanadi River near Mundali barrage, was swept away by strong currents.
According to the reports, the tusker was swept away by heavy currents while crossing the Mahanadi near Mundali. But the operation to rescue the elephant turned tragic as the boat swept away because of the strong current which was also accompanied by two media personnel.
As per the sources, along with the members of ODRAF, Media channel OTV’s Chief Reporter Arindam Das along with Cameraman Prabhat Singh were also present to cover the rescue operations. But however, Das died by drowning while cameraman Prabhat is reported to be critical.
Later a rescue operation was launched immediately and the media personnel were brought to the bank. But some of the ODRAF members were missing till the last report was filed. Soon, everyone was rushed to the SCB Hospital in Cuttack where the doctors informed the tragic news.
The elephant is one among seven others of a herd that were swept away by heavy currents while crossing the Mahanadi River near Mundali today morning. It got stuck near Mundali bridge while the remaining six elephants safely reached Nuasasan in the Athagarh block of Cuttack district.
