Operation Bhediya: Lair identified, dolls to lure, trap elusive duo in Bahraich
Forest officials have trapped four of the six wolves linked with the killings, including seven children, but two wolves have managed to dodge all the traps laid for them
The strategy to capture the two most notorious wolves roaming free in Mahsi Tehsil area in the Bahraich district, now stands changed.
Life-size dolls in colourful attire, sprinkled with the urine of children placed strategically in the now-identified path generally taken by the wolves, will now help catch the elusive animals linked to the killing of nine people in Bahraich.
Divisional forest officer (DFO) Ajit Pratap Singh said, “To lure the two wolves, dolls, resembling children, have been kept in cages installed near the areas where the wolves’ movement is suspected. Urine of children will also be sprinkled on the dolls as the olfactory sense of wolves is up to 100,000 times greater than human beings.
“The cages have been given a look to give the wolf an impression as if a child is sitting or sleeping there. As soon as the animal closes in, we will catch it.”
Forest officials have trapped four of the six wolves linked with the killings, including seven children, but two wolves have managed to dodge all the traps laid for them.
“We have identified their den and the route they have been using to reach villages. Our strategy has changed and our entire focus is on monitoring the entire route to catch them ASAP,” said Renu Singh, additional principal chief conservator, forest department.
AP Singh said that since the capture of the fourth wolf, the remaining two have become almost untraceable.
He said it might be possible that the two wolves have left the area due to fear as four members of their pack were trapped.
Wolves have a tendency to return to their den in the evening and prey at night. “We are working on a strategy keeping this habit of the wolves in mind and with human effort on the ground the thermal drones in the sky round-the-clock,” said Renu Singh, heading the operations in Bahraich.
AP Singh said after trapping a wild animal “we hand it over to veterinary experts who prepare a medical report to conclude whether the captured animal was the same who was lifting children or some other pack member was responsible.”
Besides, going through the medical report, higher authorities decide whether the animal should be kept in a zoo, freed in a forest or killed.
He said wolves, who are pack hunters, attack strategically. While one of the pack members attacks to create a distraction, the other lifts a child taking advantage of the diversion.
Dr Deepak Verma, a veterinary expert, who examined all the captured wolves, including the last one captured on August 29, said the captured wolf was a male and found under stress due to captivity and crowd of villagers. Apart from the stress no injury was found on the wolf’s body.
He said the wolf was shifted to Gorakhpur zoo on Thursday night, while the other two wolves captured earlier were sent to Lucknow Zoo. He said it was difficult to claim that the captured wolf was responsible for the ongoing attacks.
Dabeer Hasan, an executive officer of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), said there is a history of wolf attacks in Bahraich, Balrampur, Shrawasti and Lakhimpur Kheri. He said a large part of these Terai region districts lies near river basins which are the natural habitats of wolves. Hence, such incidents will take place from time to time.
To stop the recurrence of such incidents, capacity-building and training of forest employees is necessary. Moreover, proper awareness programmes should be followed in the affected areas, especially located near the Ghaghra River basin.
Besides, immediate cognizance should be taken of a wolf attack and forensic investigation should be conducted. After an attack, wolf’s saliva should be taken from the victim’s body and to be sent to the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) or to the Wildlife Institute of India (WII).
Hasan said there was a need for some special project to make people aware about wolf attacks as well as for the conservation of wolves in the area. He said the wolf is an endangered species and categorised as schedule-I animal under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972. Moreover, they play an important role in our ecosystem as they are referred to as ‘key stone species’ on which many other species and plants depend.
According to estimates, there are only about 3,000 wolves present in the country.
“Saving human life is our first and biggest priority. So a project should be prepared which is beneficial for both humans and wolves,” he said.
Awareness drive coming
Forest officials said awareness being a key factor in the hunt against the killer wolves, public awareness programmes will be continued for at least up to two months, until it was ensured that the area had been freed of wolves.
An awareness schedule will be prepared with the aim to prevent wolf attacks in near future, which will continue round the year in Bahraich forest division, said divisional forest officer Ajit Pratap Singh.