BALASORE: Two persons suffered critical injuries after being attacked by a wild bear at Nilagiri in Balasore on Wednesday morning. The injured duo, Laxmidhar Nayak of Tanaka village and Sibasankar Singh of Baunsabania have been admitted to Nilagiri community health centre.
Locals said the bear entered Tanaka village on Tuesday night and was roaming near Laxmidhar’s house. In the morning, Laxmidhar went to the backyard of his house where he encountered the wild animal. In a bid to save himself, he climbed a tree but the bear managed to grab his leg. The animal attacked his leg, injuring it grievously.
On hearing Laxmidhar’s screams, villagers rushed to the spot. Scared by the crowd, the bear ran towards Baunsabania village where it attacked Sibasankar. Subsequently, the animal went to the nearby Kuldiha sanctuary.
On being informed, forest personnel of Nilagiri range reached the spot and sent the injured duo to the hospital. The Villagers said that as elephants and bears frequently stray into human settlements, the Forest department should conduct night patrolling in the area regularly.