A farmer was mauled and eaten by a giant 12ft crocodile at a river in India.

Nimai Mallik, 36, was collecting water from the Brahmani River for his crops when the savage 12ft beast pounced on him on March 8.

The father-of-three was helpless as the croc thrashed him around in its powerful jaws, dragging him deeper into the depths while his terrified wife hurled stones in a desperate attempt to save him.

Residents rushed to the scene upon hearing the woman's screams, but they were too late, and Nimai was already floating lifeless in the river by the time they arrived.

Rangers and firefighters retrieved his half-eaten body from the river. They said Nimai visited the river daily to collect water for his vegetable garden near the riverside.

Authorities said Nimai is the latest crocodile attack casualty in the region near Bhitarkanika Park in the past few months. Since last year, seven people have died of crocodile attacks in the area, they said.

Locals have blamed the spate of deaths on crocodile farms that caused the reptiles' population to increase.

The Forest Department has ceased artificial crocodile hatching and rearing in Bhitarkanika on February 24 due to a significant increase in crocodile numbers from 96 in 1974 to 1,811 in 2024.

Sudarshan Gopinath Yadav, the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of Bhitarkanika, said that the Forest Department will provide compensation of INR 6 lakh (around 5,640 GBP) to the Nimai's family following a thorough investigation.

Additionally, the department has constructed barricades at approximately 120 river ghats near Bhitarkanika in the Pattamundai, Rajnagar, Rajkanika, and Aul blocks to prevent further crocodile attacks.

Sudarshan said: 'It is recommended forthe residents to bathe in the safety of the river barricades. We also used loudspeakers to alert the riverbank people about the presence of several saltwater crocodiles in the water bodies close to Bhitarkanika.'

Authorities have already erected a signboard near Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary alerting the locals to the possibility of lurking crocodiles.