LUCKNOW: The fear of man-eating wolves on the prowl in the villages of Bahraich district of central UP is far from over. The latest victim is a three-year-old girl Anjali who was killed in a fresh attack by wolves in Nauvan Garethi village of Mahsi Tehsil during the last 24 hours. Moreover, two women in their 50s -- Suman and Kamla – were left injured by the beast.
The attack in Hardi tehsil of Bahraich district was the second in the last 24 hours. Since mid-July, as many as nine persons including eight children, have been killed and 25 others injured in wolf attacks.
Taking a strong note of the wolf attacks, UP CM Yogi Adityanath directed the forest minister to deploy more forest guards and trap teams in the affected areas. Consequently, forest department personnel are being shifted to Bahraich, Sitapur, and Lakhimpur divisions to set up camps in areas where movement of wolves has been reported.
Notably, a wolf took away a two-and-half-year-old girl Anjali who was sleeping beside her mother on Monday wee hours. Despite the desperate cries for help of the victim's mother, Meenu, the wolf disappeared into the darkness within moments.
The child’s mutilated body without both hands was discovered after two hours at a distance of one kilometre from the house. The sight of her daughter’s lifeless body caused the mother to collapse in shock. Meenu told media persons that the incident happened at 03.35 am on Monday.
"I found out about the incident when my six-month-old younger daughter got up in the middle of the night and I found my elder daughter missing. Both the hands of my child were bitten by the wolf. We work as labourers all day and raise the children. We ran after the wolf but it escaped. We are poor so we are not able to get doors installed in the house," said the distraught wailing mother.
Just three hours later, the wild animal struck again just two Km away in Kotia village. Here a wolf attacked another woman Kamla Devi (70) sleeping on her veranda. Her screams brought her family running, but by then, the wolf had already inflicted severe injuries.
The woman remains in critical condition. Moreover, within a 30-minute span, another woman Suman Devi (65) was attacked and injured by the wolf in the same village. “Soon after the attacks, a team of police and forest reached the site and took the injured women to the hospital,” said Bahraich DFO Ajeet Pratap Singh. Later, senior officers, including Additional DG Gorakhpur Kalluri SP Kumar, DM Bahraich Monika Rani, and SP Bahraich Vrinda Shukla and other officials of the district administration, rushed to the spot.
Bahraich DM, Monika Rani said that the authorities were having trouble catching the wolves on the prowl as they were consistently changing their habitat. "The biggest problem in this drive is that every time a new village is being selected. The Wolf changes his activity every 5-6 days. The Forest Department is trying its best," she said. District Magistrate Monika Rani requested the people to stay indoors and to be alert. "We have trapped four wolves; two are left. Our team is continuously patrolling; we are trying our best to catch them as soon as possible. I request people to sleep indoors. A 2.5-year-old child has been attacked by a wolf. I request the people here to be alert," Bahraich DM said. Chief Forest Conservator (central zone) Renu Singh took stock of the situation. “Drones are being flown continuously,” she said.
To enhance surveillance, the forest department has deployed six cameras and drones, while 150 personnel from the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) patrol the area. In addition, 32 teams from the revenue department and 25 teams from the forest department are actively working on the ground. Authorities are using loudspeakers on vehicles to advise residents to stay indoors, keep their children inside, and lock their doors at night. Residents are gripped by fear, avoiding stepping outside their houses.