Officials had said on Saturday that 300 yaks died at around 15,000 ft in Mukuthang after families, which looked after them, came down to lower altitudes to save themselves from the cold, leaving the flocks behind.
Siliguri: The number of yaks that died of starvation in north Sikkim could be 500 or more, the authorities have said after talking to herders who graze the animals in Mukuthang Valley in the northeastern state near the border with China.
Officials had said on Saturday that 300 yaks died at around 15,000 ft in Mukuthang after families, which looked after them, came down to lower altitudes to save themselves from the cold, leaving the flocks behind.
“The figure is likely to increase and may cross 500 if one goes by the claim made by local people,” Raj Kumar Yadav, district collector of North Sikkim district, said.
“Two teams of the animal husbandry department and civil administration have reached the affected areas and are collating data,” said Yadav.
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