Youth mauled to death by tiger in Pilibhit

LUCKNOW: Tiger scare returned to Pilibhit after a respite of over six months when a 24-year-old man was mauled to death by a tiger from the Pilibhit Tiger Reserve (PTR) on Wednesday.

This is the third such incident reported this year. Girija Devi (50) was killed by a tiger in March, while farmer Mathura Prasad was killed while working at his farm in January.

The partly eaten body of the young man was recovered by the locals with help of forest staff and was sent for a postmortem examination.

“The body was recovered almost two kilometres inside the forest of Khutar range. The deceased has been identified as one Laxman Prasad,” said PTR deputy director Adarsh Kumar. “Laxam apparently entered the core area of the forest to collect wild mushrooms where he was attacked by the tiger and killed”.

Laxman reportedly left his house in the wee hours of Wednesday but didn’t return till late afternoon. Relatives later recovered his cycle near the forest and found his body near a water hole inside the forest. The relatives and locals informed the police about the incident and a forest team was also sent to the spot. The district administration has assured the family of support.Located on the IndoNepal border, the Pilibhit Tiger

Reserve (PTR) has turned into a hotbed of man animal conflict. Over 20 marginal farmers have lost their lives in the district after being attacked by tigers.

Considering the death toll, the local administration had proposed the construction of a fence but the project was halted soon after its inception.