PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/Haldwani
The Forest department has stepped up vigilance and taken other measures after a woman was killed in an attack by a wild animal- suspected to be a big cat- in the Almora forest division. Divisional forest officer Deepak Singh informed on Monday that a woman aged about 21 years was reported to have been killed by a wild animal in the Dabhra Saural Tok area in Mohan range. The department team reached the site of the mishap where attempts were being made to establish the identity of the wildlife animal involved on the basis of available evidence, pugmarks and other signs.
Singh said that vigilance and monitoring have been stepped up in the area while the quick response team has been activated and patrolling has been stepped up. The local villagers are being made aware to avoid going alone in the jungle or the underbrush especially during the morning and evening, ensure that women and children move in groups and that the domesticated animals are tethered in safe places. In addition to increasing night monitoring, trap cameras are also being installed to check wildlife movement in the area.
Two veterinary doctors have also been deployed in the area while department officials and teams are also monitoring the situation in the area from where regular feedback on wildlife activity is also being taken from the villagers. The DFO further informed that the process for providing Rs 10 lakh ex-gratia assistance to the victim’s family has been started. If local sources are to be believed, a big cat carried the young woman into the jungle from near her home in the village. Villagers who came to her rescue were unable to save her. The woman’s body was later recovered from the jungle.
Meanwhile, the DFO informed that nine-kilometre solar fencing work is being undertaken by the Forest department in the area. The district administration has also started fencing work in the nearby sensitive areas under the PMGSY. Public awareness programmes are being conducted in the villages affected by human-wildlife conflict while WhatsApp groups are also active for swift exchange of information and regular monitoring, he added.
