• Source:JND
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A 57-year-old woman has gone missing after a crocodile dragged her into the Kharasrota river in Odisha’s Jajpur district, police said on Tuesday.The incident took place at Kantia Village under the Binjharpur Police Station limits when the woman, identified as Soudamini Mahala, was taking a bath in the river on Monday afternoon.

The video, which went viral on social media, showed the crocodile dragging the woman into the river. 

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According to police officers present at the scene, "The woman was taking a bath in the Kharasrota river around 4 pm on Monday. A crocodile dragged her into the high stream of the river. Villagers present on the riverbank tried to chase the reptile but failed to rescue her."

The police and the fire brigade were immediately alerted, who reached the spot at the earliest and conducted a search incident. 

An eyewitness to the entire incident, Naba Kishore Mahala, said, “As we noticed that the crocodile was dragging the woman into the river, we jumped to rescue her, but all our efforts went in vain." 

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Officials have warned people living close to the river not to venture out till it is safe. Similar incidents were spotted earlier in the Baitarani River in Jajpur and in the Mahanadi River near Paradip, triggering panic among villagers residing along the riverbanks.

With inputs from PTI