More than 5,300 chickens reportedly died at a poultry farm in Odisha’s Malkangiri district after diesel could not be arranged to operate a generator during a power outage, the farm owner alleged.

According to the information available, electricity supply to the farm was disrupted after the transformer at the facility developed a fault. The poultry farm owner claimed that diesel required to run the DG set could not be procured, resulting in the deaths of thousands of chickens due to extreme heat conditions.

The dead chickens are estimated to weigh around 12.5 tonnes, with the loss valued at nearly Rs 15 lakh.

Farm Owner Alleges Diesel Was Denied

Poultry farm owner Tutu Padhi alleged that fuel stations refused to provide diesel in barrels, which affected operation of the generator during the outage.

“Due to the diesel problem, I incurred a huge loss. There was a power outage and the DG could not run without diesel. Given the high heat in Malkangiri, nearly 7 litres of diesel is required to operate the DG for even one hour,” he said.

“I was denied diesel and that resulted in the deaths of as many as 5,300 chickens. I have an Environment-Controlled (EC) poultry farm, which is completely enclosed. Without electricity supply, nearly 12.5 tonnes of chickens worth around Rs 15 lakh died within three hours,” he added.

Also Read: Fuel situation in Odisha to normalise by Monday evening: IOCL CGM

The farm owner further expressed concern that if diesel remains unavailable during recurring power disruptions amid the prevailing heat conditions, more chickens at the farm could die in the coming days.