Karnataka orders shoot-at-sight against man-eating tiger

BELGAUM: The forest department has ordered shoot the man-eater tiger prowling in Bandipur and Nagarahole forest range at sight for mauling four people in the region.

Forest minister B Ramanath Rai told the legislative council on Wednesday that forest and police personnel are on search for the tiger in the forest area.

"Principal chief conservator of forest (wildlife) and forest secretary are camping in Bandipur forest area and assess the situation. The department has ordered that man-eater tiger should be shot-at-sight," minister said.

When the minister said that the department was trying to catch it as the environmentalists would raise an issue, JD(S) member MC Nanaiah said the House was supreme not the activists. "Is the government going by what activists say or the legislators when people are being mauled by man-eater tiger? If there is more than one tiger, both should be shot at sight," he said.

Basappa, 55, was mauled to death at Chikkabargi village of Mysore district on the fringes of the Bandipur tiger sanctuary on Tuesday. It's the fourth fatal tiger attack within a week in the district. In the first two incidents tiger mauled to death two tribals at Nadgur and Seegehaadi villages , in the third incident inside the Nagarhole national park a forest watcher who went to answer a nature call during night was killed. Killer tiger even had eaten away the part of the watcher's body .

Attacking the government, Ramachandra Gowda (BJP) sought to know whether tiger was conservation programme meant killing people. He along with Sandesh Nagaraj (JDS) also demanded to shoot the tiger at sight.

On the measures taken to capture the tiger, Rai said the police and forest personnel had unsuccessfully fired 70 rounds of fire. "Officials have launched search operation with the help of elephants succeeding in its location. Besides this, 50 Tiger Protection Force men have been deployed. An additional officer from Bannerghatta forest has also been pressed into service," he said.

Expressing doubts that there could be more than one man-eating tigers, the minister also said that thrice tranquilizers were fired, but was unsuccessful. G Madhusudhan (BJP) and Nanaiah said the tiger could have been wounded by poachers and that was one of the reason it had turned into man-eater. "Once tasted blood, you cannot capture tiger and put it cage. It has to be killed," Nanaiah said.