कलेवरं परशुभिश् छित्त्वा तत्ते व्रजौकसः ।
दूरे क्षिप्त्वावयवशो न्यदहन्काष्ठवेष्टितम् ॥ ३३ ॥
chittva tat te vrajaukasah
kalevaram-the gigantic body of Putana; parasubhih-with the aid of axes; chittva-after cutting to pieces; tat-that (body); te-all of those; vraja-okasah-inhabitants of Vraja; dure-far, far away; ksiptva-after throwing; avayavasah-different parts of the body, piece by piece; nyadahan-burned to ashes; kastha-vestitam-covered by wood.
It is the practice that after a snake has been killed, its body is cut into various pieces for fear that it may come to life again simply by interacting with air. Merely killing a serpent is not sufficient; after it is killed, it must be cut to pieces and burned, and then the danger will be over. Putana resembled a great serpent, and therefore the cowherd men took the same precautions by burning her body to ashes.