Daijiworld Media Network - Bhadrak

Bhadrak, Oct 15: In a tragic incident, a woman agriculture officer was found hanging in her rented house in Bhadrak district on Wednesday, police said. The deceased has been identified as 30-year-old Niharika Dalai, a native of Randia village under Bhadrak Rural police station.

Dalai had been serving as Block Agriculture Officer (BAO) in Basudevpur for the past two years. She was living in a rented house in Balinagar village under Basudevpur police limits along with her seven-year-old daughter.

Police said Dalai had been on leave for the last few days. On Wednesday morning, she reportedly dropped her daughter at school and went out shopping. However, she did not respond to any calls afterward. Concerned, the local milkman tried to contact her repeatedly, but when there was no response and the door remained locked from inside, he alerted the landlord, who then informed the Basudevpur police.

A police team, led by Bhadrak Sadar SDPO Bichitrananda Sethi, broke open the door and discovered Dalai’s body hanging from an apron inside the house.

Niharika Dalai was married to Satyabrata Padhi, a software engineer working in Bhubaneswar.

The Basudevpur police have launched a probe to determine the exact circumstances behind her death. The body has been sent for post-mortem examination, and further investigation is ongoing, said Inspector Lopamudra Nayak.