BALASORE: A 52-year-old woman was reportedly mauled to death by a bear in Nilagiri area of the district on Wednesday morning.
The deceased was identified as Shantilata Naik of Panabandh village. Sources said Shantilata and her husband Chandramohan had gone to the nearby Tinkosia forest to collect firewood and wild mushrooms. When the woman was busy collecting firewood inside the forest, a bear suddenly attacked her.
Shantilata suffered fatal injuries to her neck and reportedly bled to death. Chandramohan managed to chase away the bear with a dry wooden branch. Subsequently, the woman was rushed to Nilagiri hospital where the doctors declared her brought dead. On being informed, Nilagiri police rushed to the hospital and seized the body for postmortem. An unnatural death case has been registered in this connection.
Shantilata’s family has demanded adequate compensation from the Forest department.