State

Ranthambore: Villagers protest over death of child in tiger attack

October 8, 2019, 4:59 pm

Ranthambore national park

Ranthambore national park

Jaipur: A day after a Ranthambore national park tiger attacked and mauled to death a 9-year-old boy and injured his mother in Dangarwada of Sawai Madhopur district, the villagers and family members of the victim staged a protest, demanding action against the forest department officials for negligence. The villagers also demanded a compensation of Rs 25 lakh for the family members of the victim. The villagers alleged that the forest department officials were aware of the tiger’s movement in the area for the past five days, but they didn’t take any action.

The boy, identified as Neeraj, was at his family’s agriculture farm when he was attacked by a tiger on Monday. When his mother tried to rescue him, the tiger attacked her also. She was seriously injured in the attack.

The angry villagers staged a sit-in, placing the dead body of the boy on the road throughout the night on Tuesday. Local administration and police officers including SDM Raghunath Khatik reached the spot where the villagers were demonstrating and tried to placate the villagers, but they didn’t budget from their demands.

They demanded that the forest ranger be suspended and a strict action be taken against concerned officials. The villagers said that the tiger was poaching in the area and the forest officials were aware of its movement for the past five days.

The villagers had informed the officials of the tiger’s movement, but no action was taken by them. They also alleged that no forest officials visited the family or the spot even after the tiger killed the child.

First published: October 8, 2019