Chennai: Deep in the forests around Salem, in Pappanayakampatti, the hunt is on for a bear that recently attacked two villagers. And the odds of the animal being captured and rehabilitated are bleak since the order forest department top brass have given sighters is to to shoot to kill.
A Deccan Chronicle investigation reveals that this was exactly what the special task force and foresters had been instructed to do in the Nilgiris last month. They had been told specifically to shoot a bear instead of trying to capture it. Pictures available with DC show the armed STF personnel pumping bullets instead of rope nets, indicating their intent was to kill the animal.
“It’s an order from the district administration and top foresters to eliminate rather than trapping it. No attempt was made to trap the bear alive and it all happened in no time when the bear was just ten feet away from us,” disclosed a source, who was part of the team in two recent encounters in which a tiger and a bear were killed. In fact, the pictures also exposed the clueless foresters watching the bear at close quarters with their rope nets in idle mode.
According to wildlife activist S. Jeyachandran of Tamil Nadu Green Movement, “The forest department has to be trained to handle weapons and more expertise in tranquilising is the need of the hour. But in this case, the forest department did its best. In fact they tranquilised the bear, but it was STF members, who played spoilsport not giving adequate time for the animal to collapse. In the melee, the animal attacked two foresters resulting in the shootout.”
“We have already served notices to the forest department asking what action has been taken so far to reduce human-animal conflicts in the state. Based on the state government’s reply, further action will be taken”, said animal welfare officer F.M. Jerold, Animal Welfare Board of India. AWBI is against any cruelty to animals, whether it’s domestic or wild and there is a need for more ecological research in to the conflicts, he added.
When contacted, a forest department official admitted that “Neither the department nor NGOs have a solution to the existing wildlife conflicts. The particular conflict with a bear is something new to the department”. Excess biotic pressure and urbanisation of Nilgiris is making things difficult for both, the department and the wildlife, the official said denying that the top brass or the district administration passed orders to eliminate the bear. The bear attacked two forest guards and to safeguard them the animal was shot dead and our staff are still under medical treatment, the official added.
“Wildlife is now free game for all and if you are equipped with a licenced gun you can shoot a tiger or a bear that carries the certification of ‘man eater’. If a tribal or poacher guns one down, the accused is booked under Wildlife Protection Act but when uniformed personnel execute the same, they are protected,” opined a wildlife research scholar who frequents Mudumalai tiger reserve.
