Bengaluru: Irked by the department's inability to capture the tiger that was wandering in the buffer zone of Bandipur Tiger Reserves, the villagers locked over 10 forest department officials in a cage that was kept to capture the tiger.
After over an hour of drama, the local Assistant Conservator of Forests Suresh and Naveen Kumar rushed to the spot, convinced the villagers and got their staff freed from the cage.
The incident took place near Gundlupet, adjoining Bandipur Tiger Reserve. The people of Bommalapura village, which falls in the buffer zone of were troubled by a tiger for the last two months. It had killed a number of cattle belonging to the villagers.
After a number of complaints, the forest department officials decided to lay a trap for the tiger capture and placed a cage. After placing the cage, the officials did not come to the spot for a week.
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On Tuesday morning, the tiger appeared in the farm of a person called Gangappa. A few days ago, the tiger had killed his cattle. The villagers informed the forest officials, who arrived one hour later. By that time, the tiger had disappeared from the place.
Irked by the delay and inaction by the forest officials, the villagers locked the 10 forest staff, who had come to capture the tiger.
Learning about the incident, ACFs of Bandipur and Gundlupet rushed to the spot, pacified the villagers and got their staff released. The two ACFs also instructed the staff not to return to headquarters until the tiger is captured.
