Two days after this reporter first went to Bhayeli, the scene was hardly any different. Near Indiranagar, half-burnt carcasses still lay in the open. Shantaben Patel, a housewife, said several pigs were still lying in front of her house as no one was willing to dispose of them. ``Some people came, but they demanded anything between Rs 50 and Rs 200 for picking up a pig'', another villager said.

Matters were complicated following reports that the pig-breeders had released more animals in the villages last night. Daksha Patel, whose buffalo was bitten by pigs a couple of days ago, said a group of persons released nearly 15 pigs. ``The pigs are big and look ferocious,'' he added.

The anger against them was also building up. Navin Patel, a resident, said: ``If matters worsen, the villagers will even catch the pig-breeders.''Even as panchayat authorities sprayed insecticide in parts of the village and the local gram panchayat tried hard to bury the carcasses, sarpanch Smita Patel's husband Kiran Patel told Express Newsline on Thursday evening: ``People have now come to know the way to get rid of pigs''.

Posioning pigs would continue, he said, defending his action. ``Our repeated requests to the Panchayat and District Collectorate have fallen on deaf ears and hence the only way out is to posion pigs,'' he added. He claimed the villagers were bound to protect their fields from the pig-inflicted devastation Meanwhile, the gram panchayat authorities claimed to have informed more villagers about disposing of the pigs in a manner to prevent outbreak of an epidemic.

DDO Anju Sharma reiterated that the panchayat would hold a joint meeting with other departments in the city to find a solution. She claimed that without adequate machinery it would be difficult for the Panchayat to control the menace.