Highly decomposed carcasses of two elephants were found in Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary in Angul district, on Tuesday.

The remains of the elephants were found in a forest near Jagannathpur village, located near the sanctuary, about 130km from here.

Forest authorities were informed by the cowherders who saw the bodies. While one of them was a tusker, another was a female pachyderm.

Forest officials rushed to the spot and started an investigation to ascertain the circumstances in which the two animals had died. While the elephants are suspected to have died after coming in contact with live wire, efforts are on to ascertain the exact reason. The animals are suspected to have been electrocuted four days ago. The medical team is examining the carcasses.

As per the statistics, the state has reported 784 elephant deaths in 10 years between 2012-13 and 2021-22.