Kochi: A 45-year-old tribal woman was mauled to death by a tiger in a private coffee plantation close to the forest in Pancharakolly near Mananthavady town in Wayanad on Friday, triggering major protests by locals and forcing the forest department to issue orders to capture the big cat.
The deceased was identified as Radha, who plucks coffee beans on daily wages for a living. She was the wife of Achappan, a temporary watchman attached to the forest and wildlife department. She was the aunt of Minnu Mani, who plays for the women’s national cricket team.
Forest minister AK Saseendran said: “The Thunderbolt squad of the Kerala police discovered the mangled remains of the woman while conducting routine surveillance in the forest area near Pancharakolly. The tribal woman was attacked by the tiger while she was walking through a forest tract adjoining the coffee plantation on her way to work around 11.15 am on Friday within the Thalapuzha forest station limits.”
“Naturally, the residents in the area are agitated and protesting. Officials including minister OR Kelu visited the site. We have issued orders to capture the tiger as soon as possible. If we are unable to catch it, the cat will be shot and killed,” he said.
Jacob Sebastian, vice-chairman of Mananthavady municipality, said the victim belonged to a destitute family and was dropped in the morning by her husband on his motorbike near the plantation. “Her body was dragged by the tiger deep into the forest. While tigers have been spotted in the area in the past, this is the first time a fatality has occurred due to tiger attack,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}Jacob Sebastian, vice-chairman of Mananthavady municipality, said the victim belonged to a destitute family and was dropped in the morning by her husband on his motorbike near the plantation. “Her body was dragged by the tiger deep into the forest. While tigers have been spotted in the area in the past, this is the first time a fatality has occurred due to tiger attack,” he said.
{{/usCountry}}Following the incident, irate locals staged protests in the area against alleged apathy of the forest department in ensuring adequate fencing and trenches to prevent tigers from encroaching into human settlements. They stopped the woman’s body from being handed over to the police for autopsy arrangements and relented only after being promised of action by minister for SC/ST affairs OR Kelu. The locals also demanded that the tiger be shot and killed.
“I can understand the sentiments of the people here. They want a permanent solution (to the man-animal conflict). But the tiger is a national animal. As a minister, I cannot announce that it will be killed. We will try to catch it and take it far away from here,” Kelu told reporters.
The minister later visited the family of the victim and handed over a cheque of ₹5 lakh as the first instalment of ex-gratia relief.
Later, he held talks with the forest department officials and arranged for a cage to be set up in the area where the woman’s body was found.
“The cage has been set to trap the tiger. We are hoping that the tiger would be caught. Rapid Response Teams (RRTs) have been deployed and they will keep a close watch on the cage and the area till morning,” Kelu added.
Meanwhile, locals said that the tiger was spotted in the area even after it mauled the woman to death.
Shanoj, a local resident, said, “I and two others had gone to look at the area where the tiger had left the body of the woman. We saw that there were pug-marks on the ground. When we followed the path through which the tiger had dragged the body of the woman, we suddenly heard a roar twice. Then suddenly, I saw the tiger in front of me. It retreated into the forest and all of us ran back.”
Shanoj said he informed the police and forest officials about the tiger sighting who advised him and other locals not to venture into the area.
The death of Radha is a continuation of the human-wildlife conflict in Wayanad and the rest of Kerala over the past few months. Each incident of a human fatality has been followed by angry protests by locals against forest department’s inaction. According to official records, at least eight people have been killed in tiger attacks in Wayanad in past 10 years. In past one month, eight people were killed in animal attacks.
The tribal woman’s killing also comes just a day ahead of the Congress party’s proposed “Malayora samara yatra” through the high-ranges against escalating human-wildlife conflict. The protest march is expected to be led by leader of opposition VD Satheesan through high-range areas that form the boundary with forests and are susceptible to wildlife attacks.