TUMAKURU: The forest department officials rescued a sloth bear that had strayed into Kenchaganahalli locality in Sira taluk, on Thursday morning. The bear had holed up inside the bathroom of a house in the area.
The drama began at around 5.30 PM on Wednesday evening when the six-year-old male bear was spotted in the village. The panic-stricken mob chased down the animal with stones and sticks and the bear then entered a bathroom, built outside the house of farmer Malleshappa. "Since the bathroom had no doors, the animal easily sneaked in and sat in the corner", an eye-witness said.
The villagers immediately alerted the forest department officials who rushed to the spot. Subsequently, a rescue team of four experts led by Dr Muralidhar from Hassan zone arrived at around 12.30 AM. The animal was tranquilised and administered first aid.
"At around 3.30 AM, it was released again in to the forests near Sira", informed range forest officer, H M Suresh.