Keonjhar: A herd of 24 elephants was found in deep slumber at Shilipada cashew forest of Saaharpada section under Patana forest range in Odisha’s Keonjhar district after reportedly getting drunk on fermented Mahua flowers.
According to sources, Shilipada villagers had kept aside fermented Mahua flowers for making liquor. They spotted the elephants sleeping in an intoxicated state at various places when they went to the forest around 6 am on Tuesday.
The villagers claimed that ‘intoxicated’ elephants were unable to move and woke up only around 10 am when locals made a lot of noises to scare away the herd, which had been on a rampage in the area destroying crops and properties.
Ranger Ghasiram Patra, however, refuted these claims. “The elephants were just resting in the night. We still do not have any evidence to confirm that they were drunk on fermented Mahua,” he added.
