Tiger kills farmer in UP's Bahraich

A 57-year-old farmer was killed by a tiger in a forest here, an official said on Thursday.

The incident happened on Wednesday near Bharatpur village on the banks of Gerua river under the Katarniaghat Wildlife Sanctuary, the forest department official said.

Ghanshyam Rajbhar was cutting the grass when the tiger attacked him, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Akashdeep Badhawan said.

An alarm raised by villagers nearby forced the tiger to escape into the forest, he said, adding that the man succumbed to injuries while being taken to the Mihinpurwa Community Health Centre.

The DFO said there is a provision of financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh in cases of death due to human-wildlife conflict. However, cutting grass in the restricted core area of the forest is prima facie a cognizable offense, he added.

In this case, a decision on the compensation will be taken as per the rules of the forest department, the DFO said.

The tiger attack took place in a forest area adjacent to the Nepal border, he said, adding that the animal will be tracked.

Teams of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) have been set up and two trained elephants engaged in combing, Badhawan said.

Cameras have been installed and vigilance increased, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)