IAF jet fires on Orissa village, residents flee

Balasore, Feb 14: Panic gripped Kirtania village of Bhograi block, 100 kms from here following indiscriminate firing from a fighter jet a...

Balasore, Feb 14: Panic gripped Kirtania village of Bhograi block, 100 kms from here following indiscriminate firing from a fighter jet at Kirtania river mouth on February 8 last killing two calves and one goat and damaging several houses and fishing boats.

Nearly 500 villagers who had reportedly fled the village after the firing have returned to the village.

According to Bhograi police, the villagers were awakened to a rude shock when bullets were rained on the village from a fighter jet at about 2 pm of February 8. Several houses of the village bore the brunt of indiscriminate firing. However, the district collector AK Baishnav who visiting the village on Saturday, denied anybody leaving the village out of panic. He clariyed that the February 8 firing was a routine test fire from the nearby Kaleikunda air base of Indian Air Force located in the neighbouring Midnapore district of West Bengal.

Prior to the visit of the district collector, local tehsildar, block development officer and police had gone tothe village and collected several rounds of empty cartridges. Defence officials here are tight-lipped about the firing incident.