Telangana: Killer tiger leaves Asifabad’s three remote mandals in jaws of fear

They fear that the big cat, which is behaving abnormally, might attack humans any time, if not trapped.

Kumram Bheem Asifabad: Panic gripped the residents of remote Bejjur, Dahegaon and Penchikalpet mandals following the increased movement of the killer tiger on the fringes of forest, roads, around water bodies and along Peddavagu. They fear that the big cat, which is behaving abnormally, might attack humans any time, if not trapped.

Named A2, the dangerous tiger, which has returned from Maharashtra recently, attacked a herd of cattle and killed a cow on the outskirts of Talayi in Bejjur on Tuesday. A motorist, who saw the tiger, escaped from the spot deserting his motorcycle at Manakadevara on the Bejjur-Kammargaon road on Monday. It attacked two calves and a cow in the Bejjur forest range in two days.

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The carnivore was earlier sighted at an irrigation tank near Rampur village in Dahegaon and on the outskirts of Agarguda in Penchikalpet mandal a few days ago. It was spotted crossing a railway track in Sirpur (T) mandal by motorists. It was also seen chasing two wild pigs at a cotton field on the outskirts of Agarguda village on February 24.

“The tiger is frequenting Peddavagu and is moving in agriculture fields apparently for food and water. Villagers are tensed to step out at night, and farmers have stopped picking cotton. They are incurring huge losses due to the menace. The sighting of tigers is routine for our villagers,” Pale Sudhakar, Agarguda sarpanch, told ‘Telangana Today.’

Meanwhile, the rural folk started comparing the behaviour of A2 with that of Avani which killed 13 humans in Maharashtra. They raised doubts over the methods and the strategies of the forest authorities to capture the big cat and alleged the officials were not interested in entangling the animal.

“The killer tiger is showing a peculiar behaviour as indicated by cattle killings and sightings. It has been two months since the killing of two tribal youngsters by the big cat. Does it take another human loss to wake the foresters up? Are they following scientific techniques to trap the carnivore? Are they interested in addressing the menace?” a local of Digida village asked.
Field Director to Kawal Tiger Reserve CP Vinod Kumar was not available for comment when contacted.

 

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