PNS | RAMNAGAR
A tiger attacked a group of women collecting fodder for cattle in a forest under Ramnagar division in Nainital district on Wednesday that resulted in the death of a 60-year-old woman. The incident sparked outrage among villagers, who blocked the Ramnagar-Bubakhal national highway for over three hours to demand action from authorities.
As per the officials, the victim, identified as Tulsi Devi from Rigoda village, had gone to the forest on the Ramnagar-Garjia route with three other women to collect fodder. While they were busy cutting grass, a tiger, lurking in the dense foliage, reportedly attacked the group. The tiger reportedly dragged the victim deep into the forest. The other women, shaken by the attack, rushed back to the village to inform the local residents and the forest department.
A joint search operation by villagers and forest officials led to the discovery of Tulsi Devi’s body a short distance from the site of the attack. Enraged by the incident and alleging negligence by the Forest department, the villagers staged a protest by placing the victim’s body on the national highway, disrupting traffic for several kilometres. Senior officials, including Ramnagar divisional forest officer (DFO) Digandh Nayak, tehsildar Kuldeep Pandey and station officer Arun Kumar Saini, arrived at the scene with a police force to pacify the protesters.
The villagers accused the department of ignoring their repeated complaints about the growing presence of tigers near their settlement. They expressed their frustration, highlighting the lack of basic amenities such as electricity, water, and education in their village. The DFO assured the villagers that the department will make all possible efforts to capture the tiger and address their grievances. Following this assurance, the villagers called off the protest and the traffic resumed on the highway. The officials informed that the victim’s body was sent for post-mortem after completing the necessary legal formalities.
