Bihar: Poachers kill 2 home guards, injure another at Valmiki Tiger Reserve in West Champaran

BAGAHA/PATNA: Poachers hacked to death two home guards inside the Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR) at Bagaha in West Champaran district in the wee hours of Sunday.
Police said the incident occured when a team of seven unarmed home guards, who were on patrol duty inside the forest at Naurangia area of VTR, spotted a poacher laying traps and nets. “The poacher was nabbed by the home guards. However, on being questioned the poacher raised an alarm and his accomplices numbering over 20 suddenly appeared on the scene and attacked the home guards with axes and other deadly weapons.While two of the home guards died on the spot, another was seriously injured in the attack,” police said adding that remaining home guards somehow managed to escape.
The slain home guards have been identified as Arjun Yadav and Hiralal Kushwaha. Pradeep Mahto, who was critically injured in the attack, has been rushed to hospital for emergency medical treatment, police said.
Muzaffarpur zonal IG Sunil Kumar said a team of home guards were on patrol in the forest area under the Gobrahiya police station area in Bagaha when they were attacked by the poachers armed with sharp-edged weapons.
Three people have been arrested, he said. “Some poaching activity was going on in the area which was spotted by the home guards who were unarmed. The poachers far outnumbered the home guards and attacked the latter with iron rods, sticks and other sharp weapons resulting in the death of two home guards on-the-spot and seriously injuring another,” he said.
The IG said that Bagaha SP Arvind Kumar Gupta and forest department officials visited the site of the incident on Sunday morning. He said that villagers in the neighbouring areas were being questioned by police and raids were on to nab the persons involved in the attack. However, no arrest have been made in this connection till the time of filing this report.
While the deceased home guard Yadav hailed from Jurapakar under the Bhairoganj police station area, Kushwaha hailed from Malpurwa under the Town police station — both in Bagaha town in the district, sources said.