Tiger linked to 9 deaths shot dead by authorities in Bihar
The forest department, however, has not provided any conclusive evidence to prove the tiger was responsible for all nine deaths, which had led to protests by villagers living near the reserve, seeking killing of the big cat to end the fear.
A “man-eating” tiger was on Saturday shot dead by a team of sharp shooters and police jawans in Bihar’s West Champaran district, hours after it allegedly mauled a woman and her son on the outskirts of the Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR), officials said.
The development came a day after the Bihar government issued a shoot-at-sight order for the tiger that had allegedly killed nine people since May this year, prompting the forest department to declare it a “man-eater”. The forest department, however, has not provided any conclusive evidence to prove the tiger was responsible for all nine deaths, which had led to protests by villagers living near the reserve, seeking killing of the big cat to end the fear.
In the recent past, a surge in man-animal conflict has been reported — especially from near reserves and forest areas — something that wildlife experts have attributed to encroachment of animals’ habitats by humans.
The tiger, which was being searched for the past 27 days, has been killed, said VTR’s wildlife conservator and field director Neshamani K. “Steps are being taken to fulfil all the necessary legal formalities, including a post-mortem examination,” said Neshamani. “The viscera will be sent to Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI), Bareilly and Wildlife Institute of India (WWI) at Dehradun for forensic testing.”
On Saturday morning, the tiger allegedly killed Babita Devi (35) and her son CM Kumar (8) while they were collecting fodder for their livestock at Sitaltola Baluwa village under the Goberdhana police station on the outskirts of VTR.
According to forest officials, the tiger had first killed a 16-year boy, identified as Dinesh Choudhary, on May 8, creating panic among villagers. A 35-year-old man, Sanjay Mahato, was allegedly killed by the tiger at Dumari village in the district on Friday morning, while a 12-year-old girl became its victim on the intervening night of October 5 and October 6 at Singahi Mustoli village in Bagahi panchayat, about 25 km from Bairiya Kala village in Harnatand panchayat where the big cat had killed Prem Kumari (40) on September 12, forest officials said.
Earlier, experts from Hyderabad, Patna and Nepal conducted multiple operations to catch the tiger, but in vain. On Friday, Bihar’s chief wildlife warden PK Gupta approached the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and got the permission to shoot the big cat.
The state forest department engaged a team of rescuers and shooters from Hyderabad, including noted hunter Nawab Shafath Ali Khan.
“The biggest hurdle was sugarcane fields which provided the animal the cover to escape. The man-eater used to attack villagers during early morning hours or at around midnight and after the incident it used to hide behind the thick bushes in sugarcane farms,” said Surendra Singh, director (ecology), forest department. “Though we could see its pugmarks near the farm, it couldn’t be captured.”
Singh said incessant rain was another challenge in the operation.
“There was no option other than to kill the animal,” said a villager who lived near VTR and identified himself as Mukhiaji.
“It was a sleepless night for the whole village. While some of us kept banging stones against each other, others kept beating tin containers to shoo away the tiger if at all hiding near our village,” said Paltu Mahato, a resident of Sitaltola Baluwa village. “In some villages, people burst crackers in the night, others lighted torches (mashals) to keep the tiger away.”
Ram Kisun Yadav, another resident of the village, said now they can sleep in peace and explained the reason for venturing out in the forest. “We need to feed our cattle and have to go out,” he said, citing it as a possible reason for Saturday’s twin tiger attack deaths.
As the news of another killing surfaced on Saturday morning, a team of eight sharpshooters of Bihar police, along with 200 employees of the forest department, surrounded the sugarcane field at Sitaltola Baluwa village. “In an operation that lasted for about seven hours, the tiger was shot dead by the shooters. The animal sustained four bullets and collapsed,” said Vinod Mishra, circle officer, Ramnagar, refuting villagers’ claims that the tiger was only tranquilised.
An elaborate strategy was formulated on Friday evening after receiving the shoot-at-sight order from the government, the circle officer said, describing the killing of tiger as the sole objective behind Saturday’s operation.
