LUCKNOW: An 86-year-old woman was killed in a leopard attack in Bahraich’s Sujauli area early Friday morning after the animal entered her makeshift house, dragged her away by the neck and disappeared into nearby bushes. Her partially eaten body was found nearly 50 metres from her home about two hours later.
The victim, identified as Phoolawati, was sleeping alone on a cot inside her thatched house in Sitarampurwa village near a canal when the leopard attacked at around 3 am, according to villagers. Police and forest officials reached the spot after being informed. Officers found what they identified as leopard pugmarks near the site, strengthening the suspicion that the woman was killed in a leopard attack. A team from the Katarniaghat forest range, along with Sujauli police station in-charge Ram Govind Verma, sub-inspector Chandan Yadav and other personnel, reached the village. With the help of villagers, police recovered the body from the field and sent it for post-mortem examination.
Impact of Housing Conditions on Safety
Phoolawati, an elderly woman, lost her home last year due to erosion from the Ghaghra river. Following this disaster, she relocated to a temporary shelter along the embankment of the Saryu canal. Her granddaughter, Sudama Devi, emphasized that the family was unable to build a permanent house due to restrictions from the irrigation department. As a result, Phoolawati has been living in a thatched structure, which lacks the security of a solid home. Sudama expressed a belief that Phoolawati might have survived a recent incident if she had been residing in a safer, more stable environment.