3 farmers in Shirur claim jackal pounced on them

Pune: Three farmers, including a woman, claimed to have suffered injuries in a jackal attack in Takli Haji village of Shirur tehsil, off Pune-Ahmednagar highway, around 70km from Pune city, on Monday.The incident took place when the farmers were working in the field. They were treated at a primary health centre in the village and later released. The health condition of the farmers is stable, said forest officials.Junnar forest division officials said this was the first attack involving an Indian jackal in Shirur, one of the four forest ranges in the division. A forest team visited the spot and inspected the field on Tuesday morning, but did not find any pugmarks.Shirur range forest officer Manohar Mhaisekar told TOI, “The farmers said a jackal attacked them as they worked in the field. It is unusual as jackals run from humans. We have not reported a single jackal attack on humans in our range in the last two decades.” “Some villagers told us that the jackal could be rabies-infected. Our team is patrolling in and around the village,” Mhaisekar added. In January, a pack of jackals had killed a goat in Pabal village in the range. “But even such attacks are sporadic. Jackals prey on rabbits, bandicoot rats, etc. They sometimes target small cattle or goats, if they are in packs. Otherwise, they are docile and prefer to stay away from human habitation,” said a senior forest official.