Four, including two women injured in attack by sloth bears

BILASPUR: Four persons, including two women were injured in two different incidents of attacks by sloth bears. The incidents occurred at two surrounding villages in Korea district in north Chhattisgarh on Saturday morning. Speaking to TOI Akhilesh Mishra, ranger, Baikunthpur range informed that the incidents occurred at villages Dabripara and nearby Janjharia near Jamgehna, at the outskirts of Baikunthpur, the district
headquarters of Korea. Injured have been identified as Somaribai and her daughter Rambai, residents of Dabripara and Sampat and Amarjeet of Jamjharia.

The victims had gone to collect dori (fruit of Mahua) in the morning when the attacks occurred. In both cases other villagers, who were
also collecting dori raised an alarm and chased away the bears. The victims were rushed to district hospital, from where they were discharged after being given the first aid, said Mishra and added that they were given Rs 1000 as interim relief by forest department immediately, while their compensation cases are being prepared.

This is the time when apart from dori, jack fruits are also ripening. The sweet fragrance of ripening jack fruits attracts sloth bears and wild elephants. While at present there are no wild elephants in Korea district, sloth bears are a native to forests here. Moreover, most of the villages of the district have large number of jack fruit trees. Cases of people getting attacked by sloth bears in villages after
midnight or in the early hours are reported often during summers. Similarly, people who go to the forests to collect tendu leaves in this season also face the hazard of attacks by sloth bears.

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