Twelve buffaloes died mysteriously in Ankleshwar on Thursday night after drinking water on a stretch of land in the Ankleshwar-GIDC area near Kanhaniyanagar in Bharuch.

Villagers said around 24 cattleheads went for grazing on the land on Thursday morning. Most fell ill a few hours later and 12 died that same evening. They alleged the cattle died because of poisoning.

The Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) and the Bharuch district administration are now looking into the issue. Bharuch Resident Deputy Collector N V Upadhyay said they are waiting for the post-mortem report from the Bharuch Veterinary Department. Further investigations into the case would commence only after the arrival of the report, he said.

"We only know for now that they grazed there and died later the same evening. But we have to confirm it was because of poisoning before we take further steps," Upadhyay said.

He added that GPCB was also looking into the matter.

The buffaloes belonged to two persons, Jagji Bharwad and Deva Bharwad, both residents of Kanhaiyanagar. This lies in the same part of Sangrampur, which is being monitored for pollution norms in the wake of the fire at the BEIL premises.

The two told the authorities that the cattle grazed on the GIDC land and then drank water from a drainage line nearby. Sources in Ankleshwar said that the veterinary department were trying to save the remaining buffaloes.

GPCB Regional Officer V R Gadge said they were not sure about the cause of death. "Our officers reached the spot immediately after we received reports about the deaths, to collect samples for analysis," said Gadge.