A 47-year-old woman was fatally attacked by a tiger on Friday morning at Priyadarshini Estate in Mananthavady village, triggering widespread protests by locals in the area. The incident has caused much anger among the locals who are afraid of venturing near the jungle now.
The tragic incident occurred while the woman was plucking coffee in the estate. According to the district administration, her body was later discovered by forest officials during a routine patrol. The attack has intensified fears among the local population, especially since it comes just a day after Kerala Forest Minister A.K. Saseendran claimed in the state assembly that human-wildlife conflicts were decreasing across Kerala, with effective measures in place to address the issue.
In response to the incident, Minister Saseendran told reporters that immediate orders had been issued to capture or eliminate the tiger responsible for the attack. He acknowledged the mounting public anger and stated that O.R. Kelu, the Minister for the Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Backward Classes, had reached the site to engage with protestors and address their concerns.
Visuals aired on television showed a large group of locals expressing their anger by preventing the authorities from taking the woman’s body for postmortem. Many of the estate’s women workers demanded that the tiger be captured or killed to prevent further attacks.
Minister Kelu met with the protesters and assured them that all necessary steps would be taken to locate and neutralize the tiger. He also emphasized that a fencing project for the area, which had been planned but not implemented, would now be expedited to enhance safety.
“This project will be carried out without further delay,” Kelu said, urging the residents to release the woman’s body so that essential postmortem procedures could be completed. He further stated that additional measures, such as deploying Rapid Response Team (RRT) units, would be taken to provide maximum protection to the local population.
The tragic incident underscores the ongoing challenges in balancing wildlife conservation efforts with the safety of people living near forested areas. The government now faces mounting pressure to not only capture the tiger but also implement long-term solutions to prevent such occurrences in the future.
