If you want to sleep peacefully, stay awake otherwise the ‘wolf’ will come… At present, the situation is similar in Bahraich district of Uttar Pradesh. There is neither peace by day nor peace by night. Here, if there is anything left in the lot of man, it is ‘Chowkidari’… of his village, his family and his society. If you want to save the lives of your people, you have to stay awake day and night. Don’t know when this wolf will attack. An elderly woman and six children have died in the last one and a half months due to wolf attacks. People are living in fear. The situation has become so bad that the legislators of the area themselves are keeping vigil with guns in hand.
Bahraich district lies in the north-eastern part of Devipatan division. The northern part of the district is the Terai region, which is surrounded by dense forests. Chakia, Sujauli, Nishangra, Mihinpurwa, Bichia and Bagauli are the major forest areas of the district. Katarniaghat here is also very famous. Elephants, tigers and leopards can be seen in Katarniaghat forest. However, sometimes they come out of the forest and reach the plains and then attack humans. So far many people have died due to tiger and leopard attacks.
Less fear of tiger-leopard, now more fear of wolf
Till now people were afraid of these tiger and panther attacks, but now a new wild animal has entered. The special thing is that this wild animal is also known as the deadly enemy of tiger and leopard. His name is ‘Wolf’. Villagers now fear the attacks of these wolves more than tigers and leopards. In one and a half months, they have made six children and an old woman their victims. Three children were injured in his attack and are undergoing treatment in hospital.
This wolf attack is happening in Mahasi tehsil area of Bahraich district. People are keeping vigil day and night in more than 24 villages of Hardi Police Station area here. Last Monday night, wolves attacked and injured three children of the village. By the time the forest department team deployed for security reached the village, the wolves had reached another village. Here he made a five-year-old child his victim.
Kidnapping while sleeping with parents
Regarding the wolf attacks, Bahraich DFO Ajit Pratap Singh said that many of our teams are on continuous patrol day and night in more than two dozen villages of Hardi police station area. On Monday night we received information that three children aged three, six and nine were attacked by wolves in Chhatarpur Gram Panchayat of Khairighat Police Station area. Here the children’s lives were saved due to the readiness of the villagers. Our team also reached the spot immediately. Meanwhile, information was received that these wolves have reached Diwanpurwa Majra of Raipur Gram Panchayat and have taken away Ayansh (5), who was sleeping with his parents.
So far 6 children have been eaten by wolves.
DFO Ajit Pratap Singh said when a search was launched for Ayansh, Ayansh’s body was found in a nearby field in the early hours of Tuesday morning, 40 to 50 percent eaten. DFO Ajit Pratap Singh said that the post-mortem is being done after taking possession of the dead body. He said that so far six children have died due to these attacks in the last one and a half months. Looking at the menace of wolves in the district, Barabanki DFO Akashdeep Badhawan and Katarniaghat Wildlife Division DFO B. Shiv Shankar has also been deployed.
The forest department is tracking wolves with drone cameras
The DM-SP is also continuously patrolling the area along with the forest department team and talking to the villagers and asking them to be vigilant. The DM says that the forest department team is trying to catch the wolves. DFO Ajit Pratap Singh said that this time wolves have left patrolling villages and attacked new areas. Our teams were patrolling the affected villages in Hardi police station area, but now they have been attacked in villages in Khairighat police station area. Currently, the wolf pack is being monitored with the help of drone cameras.
BJP MLAs are watching
DFO Ajit Pratap Singh said that three wolves have been caught so far. However, exact information about their number is not yet available. According to villagers, there are more than a dozen wolves in the area. If they are still being attacked even after three are caught, their number is certain to be higher. Now BJP MLA Sureshwar Singh himself is seen keeping vigil with the villagers with a gun, to save the children and women from the wolves. The BJP MLA said that to save the families be careful, arrangements are being made to catch the rest of the animal.
