The Statesman
Kolkata, 18-July-2014

TIGER TUSSLE LEAVES ONE FELINE & A FOREST GUARD DEAD, JUMBO INJURED
DEATH IN THE JUNGLE

Gaurav Chandra
gauravchandra9@gmail.com
Bhopal, 17 July,14

It started as a fierce fight among three tigers in Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve in Madhya Pradesh yesterday, but it ended with one of the tigers getting killed, a forest guard dead and two other officials and the elephant they were riding to stop the fight injured.

According to forest officials, the fight began in the Mirchaini area under beat no. 313 of the reserve's Tala range. A two-and-a-half years old tiger from the Hardia area intruded into the Mirchaini area and soon after two tigers both one-and-a-half-years old lunged towards it to ward it off and drive it out of their territorial zone.

On getting information about the fight, forest Dy. Ranger R A Pathan and forest guard Vinod Pakhale rushed to the spot on elephant back along with Mahaut Neelam.

But the moment the elephant reached the spot, both the tigers of Mirchaini area broke off from fight and made the pachyderm their target. Onr of them mauled it on its trunk, while the other pounced on its foot. The elephant panicked and went into bucking frenzy in an attempt to throw off the tigers.

It did succeed in throw off the tigers, but in the process the three forest personnel tumbled down from its back. Mr. Pathan and Neelam somehow managed to get into shelter of nearby trees. A panic-stricken Pakhale too started running with all his might, but he fell to the ground at some distance and never got up again, forest officials said.

By this time another team of forest personnel reached the spot. They picked up Vinod who was rushed to the Umaria district hospital. However doctors at the hospital declared him dead. It was a mystery how he died. Forest officials could not say with certainty whether he had a fatal fall or whether the attack by tigers had anything to do with his death.

While the rescue operation was going on, the tigers resumed their fight. It ended only after one of the three was killed. Later, forest officials found the dead feline was one of two tigers from Mirchaini area.

"It is very tragic incident. What makes us even sadder is the fact that we found after checking Vinod Pakhale's service record that the day he died was his birthday," Bandhavgarh Park Director Mr. C H Murlikrishnan told the Statesman today.

" Only the post-mortem report will reveal the cause of his death. According to information we have got so far there was no external injury marks on his body," Mr. Murlikrishnan added.

(a representative photograph not produced here)