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Couldn't find a written report on this incident, so I'm posting a link to a CNN-IBN video of the same.
Villagers mercilessly beat a sloth bear near Maharashtra's Tadoba Tiger Reserve. The incident occured in the presence of forest officials.
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/villagers.../126067-3.html
Shocking to say the least. Here the protectors are turning into killers.
Sloth bears, like other animals, don't understand the boundaries created by us. They will move out of the forest in search of food. With increasing pressure from villagers ie. people collecting fruits, the food available for the bears are getting limited. So they have to move out, and there are chances of close encounters, whenever a person stumbles on a bear. Similar incidents are happening on the outskirts of bangalore. In a number of cases, the forest department is a mute spectator and in some cases, they actively participate as in this case.
A timebound inquiry should be ordered into this incident and action should be taken.
Sabyasachi