Man bitten to death by tiger in UP Lakhimpur Kheri, second such incident in two weeks

Lakhimpur Kheri (UP):

A 40-year-old man was killed by a tiger in the Maheshpur range of South Kheri forest division in this district of Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday, the second such death in the area in two weeks.

Jakir, a resident of Muda Assi village, was attacked by the animal while he was working in his sugarcane field. The incident sparked an outcry among the villagers, who are demanding immediate action to capture the big cat.

Sanjay Biswal, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of South Kheri, confirmed the second human death due to tiger attacks in the Maheshpur range.

On August 27, another villager, Ambarish Kumar, was allegedly killed by the same tiger. Following these tragic events, the state Forest Minister Arun Kumar visited the area to assess the situation and instruct the forest authorities to capture the tiger.

The forest department has deployed patrol teams, set up cages and cameras and called in tranquilizer experts to try to capture the elusive animal, but heavy rains and waterlogging have hampered their efforts.

According to the DFO, four patrol teams equipped with drone cameras and other equipment have been deployed and four cages and 40 cameras have been installed in the affected areas to locate and monitor the tiger.

Tranquilizers led by Daksha Gangwar from Pilibhit Tiger Reserve were called in. A tranquillizer from Kanpur Zoo was also called in.

The DFO said the tiger's movements were tracked and its location identified a few days ago, but heavy rains and subsequent flooding hampered the operation.

Following the big cat's recent attack, the situation in the region is tense and authorities are under increasing pressure to resolve the human-animal conflict.

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