Chain-link fencing erected around the forest at villagers’ demand has complicated the situation by limiting the animals’ routes back into the core forest
Residents of Pandari, Kalliya and Sada villages, located around 2km from Pilibhit Tiger Reserve’s Mala range, said they were spending anxious days and sleepless nights. Chain-link fencing erected around the forest at villagers’ demand has complicated the situation by limiting the animals’ routes back into the core forest Chain-link fencing erected around the forest at villagers’ demand has complicated the situation by limiting the animals’ routes back into the core forest Chain-link fencing erected around the forest at villagers’ demand has complicated the situation by limiting the animals’ routes back into the core forest Chain-link fencing erected around the forest at villagers’ demand has complicated the situation by limiting the animals’ routes back into the core forest Chain-link fencing erected around the forest at villagers’ demand has complicated the situation by limiting the animals’ routes back into the core forest Chain-link fencing erected around the forest at villagers’ demand has complicated the situation by limiting the animals’ routes back into the core forest Chain-link fencing erected around the forest at villagers’ demand has complicated the situation by limiting the animals’ routes back into the core forest Chain-link fencing erected around the forest at villagers’ demand has complicated the situation by limiting the animals’ routes back into the core forest Pilibhit: Three big cats, believed to be a tigress and her two sub-adult cubs, have been roaming agricultural fields around three Pilibhit villages for a week, triggering panic as the peak paddy-harvesting season brings farmers and their families into the fields. Chain-link fencing erected around the forest at villagers’ demand has complicated the situation by limiting the animals’ routes back into the core forest.
The three affected villages form a triangle and are located around 1.5km from one another. Pandari resident Kamal Kumar recalled the death of Pankaj Kumar, an 18-year-old Class 10 student, in a tiger attack on Feb 19, 2024. Kumar said villagers were also haunted by three fatal human-tiger conflicts reported in the nearby villages of Mewatpur, Phulhar and Bithra Mandaria on June 9, July 14 and July 17 last year, respectively. Pilibhit Tiger Reserve divisional forest officer Manish Singh said, “There is a gap of around 300 metres in the chain-link fencing at the interface of the Mahof and Mala forest ranges, about 1.5km from the felines’ location, which they can use to return to their habitat.
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Tiger reserve authorities have fenced 67km of the core forest’s periphery, with a major portion in the Mala range, according to official records. Officials said this was the first time such comprehensive arrangements had been made to protect villagers during harvesting operations. Pankaj was attacked after he went near a village pond to relieve himself. Given the risk during harvesting, senior forest officials have deployed monitoring teams equipped with thermal drone cameras. “We have widely circulated a message asking villagers to inform the authorities before beginning harvesting. This will allow forest personnel to confirm the felines’ location using drone cameras and make arrangements for farmers’ safety,” Singh added. Download the TOI App.