Bhubaneswar/
KORAPUT: The bear that killed eight persons before being beaten to
death at Kotpad in Koraput apparently went on an attacking spree after
the villagers eliminated two of its cubs a few days ago, official
sources said on Monday.
"The villagers of Girla, where the unprecedented incident took place, had killed and burnt alive two of the bear's cubs that had strayed into the locality," a forest officer told TOI. "The villagers killed the cubs as part of their 'Benta' celebrations, during which tribals go on a hunting spree."
This, animal experts, suspect turned the female bear, aged over 10 years, very revengeful. "We had never come across such abnormal behaviour of a bear. The brutality with which it has killed the eight people has shocked us," the officer said, adding, "Initially, we suspect she suffered from rabies, but that does not seem to be the case as the injured are doing fine."
Of the eight victims of the wild animal, there was a couple. The bear, which was moving in Andramuda forest, ventured into adjoining Girla village and killed the couple, Laku Mali and Devki, who were sleeping outside their home at around 3 am on Sunday. The ferocity of the attack was such the couple could not even retaliate and died on the spot.
Forest minister Bijayashree Routray said he was waiting for the inquiry report from chief conservator of forests (wildlife) Harik Kumar Bist, who visited the spot, to ascertain the reasons leading to the tragedy. "A bear killing eight persons within 24 hours is unheard of. We will go deep to probe the reasons," he told TOI. Bist said they met the families of those dead and inquired about the incident and also visited the spot at Andramuda forest where the bear attacked the villagers to gain first hand information. Koraput collector Sachin Jadav accompaniedhim during his visit to the victims' families.
Bist described the incident as 'rare' and noted, "Generally bears attack one or two persons but here it killed eight persons and injured five. Why all of a sudden the animal developed such aggression is under investigation. The autopsy report of the bear is awaited. It will take some time to wrap up the inquiry," he said.
"The villagers of Girla, where the unprecedented incident took place, had killed and burnt alive two of the bear's cubs that had strayed into the locality," a forest officer told TOI. "The villagers killed the cubs as part of their 'Benta' celebrations, during which tribals go on a hunting spree."
This, animal experts, suspect turned the female bear, aged over 10 years, very revengeful. "We had never come across such abnormal behaviour of a bear. The brutality with which it has killed the eight people has shocked us," the officer said, adding, "Initially, we suspect she suffered from rabies, but that does not seem to be the case as the injured are doing fine."
Of the eight victims of the wild animal, there was a couple. The bear, which was moving in Andramuda forest, ventured into adjoining Girla village and killed the couple, Laku Mali and Devki, who were sleeping outside their home at around 3 am on Sunday. The ferocity of the attack was such the couple could not even retaliate and died on the spot.
Forest minister Bijayashree Routray said he was waiting for the inquiry report from chief conservator of forests (wildlife) Harik Kumar Bist, who visited the spot, to ascertain the reasons leading to the tragedy. "A bear killing eight persons within 24 hours is unheard of. We will go deep to probe the reasons," he told TOI. Bist said they met the families of those dead and inquired about the incident and also visited the spot at Andramuda forest where the bear attacked the villagers to gain first hand information. Koraput collector Sachin Jadav accompaniedhim during his visit to the victims' families.
Bist described the incident as 'rare' and noted, "Generally bears attack one or two persons but here it killed eight persons and injured five. Why all of a sudden the animal developed such aggression is under investigation. The autopsy report of the bear is awaited. It will take some time to wrap up the inquiry," he said.
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