Udala: In a tragic incident, two women died of snakebite in separate cases in Kaptipada block of Odisha's Mayurbhanj district here on Friday night. 

The deceased were identified as Jayanti Behera of Golagadia village in Kaptipada and Sukanti Baske of Mouda village within Udala police limits. While Jayanti was bitten by a venomous snake while sleeping in her house, Sukanti was bitten by a poisonous snake while collecting firewood. 

"My wife was sleeping when a common krait bit her. The snakebite occured late in the night around 1-2 am. Since we did not have any vehicle, I asked a friend and relative for help. We hired a car and rushed her to Udala hospital where doctors followed all needful procedures. However, when her condition did not improve, we were asked to shift her to the district headquarters hospital in Baripada. The ambulance had just arrived but my wife did not survive," claimed Jayanti's husband Abhimanyu Behera. 

Udala's Sukanti Baske met a similar fate when she was arranging firewood to cook dinner. Her husband Dhaneswar Baske said she was a diabetes patient and hence, was splitting the wood to make rotis for herself. "She was gathering firewood for supper when a cobra resting under the logs bit her. My two nephews rushed her to Udala hospital in an auto but she died before treatment," he told mediapersons. 

In June, a 45-year-old man and his five-year-old son died of snakebite in Pratap Chandrapur village in Kohira panchayat here. As per reports, Harekrushna Mukhi and his son Kishan were sleeping in their home when they were bitten by a venomous snake.