Wayanad: The Forest Department has constituted an 80-member Special Task Force to trap the tiger that killed and partially ate a farmer at Moodakkolly, Vakery near Sulthan Bathery four days ago.
Minister for Forests and Wildlife, AK Saseendran, said in a press release on Wednesday that the team will be equipped with all essential equipment including 25 live camera traps, cage traps and rifles.
The Forest Department has fitted cameras around a chicken farm at Moodakkolly where pug marks were found in the morning.
Rahul Gandhi MP had sanctioned funds to the forest department to purchase multi-purpose all-terrain vehicles. The department had requested the Wayanad MP for funds.
Meanwhile, villagers are still in the grip of fear of the tiger which remains elusive. The district administration has imposed prohibitory orders in the Moodakkolly Village where dairy farmer Prajeesh was killed by the big cat. A holiday has also been declared for the Government Primary School in the region until the prohibition orders are lifted.
CD Saju, a local farmer, said the coffee harvest in the region has been hit due to the tiger scare. “The forest department is also helping the students to travel to school and back and also helps transport daily labourers back home in the evening,” Saju said.
A man killed, devoured by a tiger in neighboring Bandipur
While the forest department in Kerala is on a ‘wild hunt’, at the neighbouring Bandipur Tiger Reserve (BTR) in Karnataka, a man was killed and partially devoured by a tiger.
The victim was identified as Basavaiah, 50, a tribesperson who went to the forest on Monday to collect firewood and graze his cattle. As he did not return, the villagers alerted the forest department and a search was launched. The partially devoured body of the man was found on a hillock in the Kundakere Range of the reserve Tuesday morning.
According to Bandipur Tiger Reserve Director Ramesh Kumar, the body was found about three kilometres inside the forest. “The body was half-eaten and we suspect it is a case of tiger attack,” Kumar said.
A native of Adinakanive Haadi village of Chamarajnagar District, Basavaiah belongs to the Jenu Kurumba tribal community. The villagers, who depend on the jungle for grazing cattle and to collect firewood, are upset by the killing. This is the fourth death from tiger attacks in the Bandipur Tiger Reserve limits in recent months. The Gundelpet Police have registered a case.
The Bandipur Tiger Reserve is contiguous to the 344.44 sq km Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary. According to experts, tigers travel between the two wildlife zones either during conflict with another tiger or due to wildfire, extreme drought or other disturbances.
