MYSURU: A month after farmer Nagaraju was attacked by a tiger in H D Kote taluk, a cowherd was mauled to death by a tiger at the Yediyala forest range in Bandipur National Park on Tuesday. The deceased has been identified as 55-year-old Shivanna, a resident of Hadanooru village in H D Kote taluk. He is survived by his wife and two children.
Shivanna, who left home in the morning to graze cattle, walked six kilometres from the village and entered the Yediyala forest range. The tiger, which was waiting for its prey, attacked Shivanna around 11 am and dragged him 300 metres into the forest. Hearing his screams, villagers rushed to the spot in a bid to rescue him. But by the time they reached the spot, they found the tiger sitting on Shivanna’s body, devouring him.
The tiger then pounced on the villagers, seriously injuring Narendra, who was returning with one Purushotham from the Mahadeshwara temple.
Narendra, a resident of Sadanahalli in Pandavapura, was taken to a private hospital in Mysuru.
As news of the attack spread, hundreds of villagers gathered at the spot. They beat up two forest officials, accusing them of arriving late to the spot.
They accused the forest officials of negligence and said the attack on Narendra could have been averted had they arrived on time.
The forest officials, who have recovered Shivanna’s body, will hand it over to family members after postmortem.
Field director, Project Tiger, Jagathram confirmed Shivanna’s death. He said the officers were on the spot and he was awaiting a detailed report.
Fear Haunts Village
The villagers say attacks on humans and livestock by tigers, leopards and elephants were frequent and that they were living in fear. Tigers, whose population is on the rise, have been entering human habitation, they said and asked officials to chalk out steps to prevent animal attacks.
“With the recent attack on a villager Nagaraj still fresh in our memories, the mauling of Shivanna has shocked us. We are afraid to step out or send our children out. Lack of access to toilets is posing problem for us,” Venkaiah, a villager said.
“Forest officials have failed to check the tiger population. Officials are yet to trace the tiger which killed Nagaraj two months ago,” added Lingaiah.