‘Tiger curfew’ in Pilibhit after 7 die

PILIBHIT: Thirty villages around the core area of Pilibhit tiger reserve are living in the shadow of a “man-eater” on the prowl. After seven villagers were killed by two tigers in around three months, there is almost a tiger curfew.
When farmers muster the courage to go out to their fields, they do so in daylight and in tight little bands, armed with whatever weapons they can manage.
Children are sent to school under escort, or just kept at home. Residents have even refused to vote in the elections, telling the government, “Go get the tigers to vote, since they call the shots here, not us.”
On February 11, a forest department team did manage to corner and tranquilise a tiger which they said had killed six villagers since November 28.
The big cat was then sent to Lucknow Zoo. But there was a seventh killing on February 16, and this time, forest officials said there would not be second hunt. Divisional forest officer (DFO) Kailash Prakash said, “In this case, the woman crossed the outer boundary of the reserve and went inside to a distance of 300 m, where she was killed. The tiger did not enter a human settlement.”
Villagers are taking this as yet another sign that the administration has washed its hands of them. “We usually harvest sugarcane at dawn and guard the fields at night from wild animals. Now, we only go out in daylight, armed with sticks, and return by 5 pm. None is safe after dark,” said Pyare Lal of Pipariya Santosh village.
Two residents of Pipariya Santosh village have been killed by tigers, and on Friday evening, villagers claimed to have seen a second tiger lurking in a field. Mewatpur village, which lost Kalavati (55) to a tiger on Thursday, is virtually paralysed with fear.
“The forest begins less than a kilometre from here. Most residents have not gone to their fields in two days. The harvest does not matter, everyone is scared for their lives,” said Kalavati’s son Ram Ladait.
“We have no school, so our children are enrolled in public and private schools in the nearby Bankati and Methi villages. We have been accompanying the children to and from school. Some parents have just stopped sending their children out,” said Sushil Kumar, another Mewatpur resident.
With residents unable to protect their fields at night, nilgai and wild boars have had a free run and have caused considerable damage to crops.
“A large number of farmers have suffered losses to their livelihood,” said Ram Kumar Rathore, husband of Santoshi, pradhan of Pipariya Santosh. The forest department might deny that there is a second maneater, but they are monitoring 30 villages.
“Six teams led by experts are monitoring the villages,” said DFO Prakash, adding efforts were on to fence the forest area. There are 44 tigers in the reserve. The DFO said nine cubs had been spotted and the department was “hopeful” that the tiger count would go up. Villagers are not. Shakina Begum, head of Danga village, said, “Forest officials are saying there is nothing to be afraid of. But after seven killings, what else can you expect?”
(With inputs from Keshav Agrawal)