After a violent altercation that was purportedly brought on by long-standing animosity and disagreements over sand mining, tension erupted in Gilajodi village inside the boundaries of the Singla police station in the Balasore district late on Friday night.
Villagers said that about eight miscreants arrived in two automobiles late at night and allegedly discharged blank rounds to frighten them and spread fear. Villagers emerged from their homes to face the assailants as a result of the abrupt firing, which created a tense situation.

The accused allegedly abandoned their cars and tried to escape on foot as the locals gathered and pursued the miscreants. Three of them were overpowered by the locals during the chase and subsequently turned over to the police.

It is claimed that the remaining defendants fled throughout the night.

Soon after receiving information, police arrived on the scene and managed to contain the situation. To stop any more escalation, the area's security has been strengthened.

The incident, according to the villagers, is related to an ongoing conflict over the exploitation of sand from the Subarnarekha river. A similar conflict had apparently taken place earlier on November 28 when two opposing factions used lethal weapons to fight one another over sand mining operations. At least one person suffered serious injuries in that incident.
According to police, an investigation is being conducted to determine whether illicit sand mining operations are the cause of the ongoing violence and to identify everyone engaged in the most recent incident.