SRINAGAR, Sept 17: Two villagers were seriously injured when a wild bear attacked them in a remote hamlet in south Kashmir, the third such incident in past two days, police said.
The latest attack took place in Kunjibal area of Tral in Pulwama district in south of Srinagar, main city of Kashmir, a valley where wild animals are now frequently wandering into villages and hamlets, killing people and livestock.
“Tajamul Ashraf and Abdul Rashid Bhat were injured when a bear attacked to them in their village. Both the injured were shifted to hospital for treatment,” said a police officer.
Earlier on Saturday two people including a five-year-old boy were mauled by bears in Budgam and Kupawara districts.
Wild bears and leopards population have increased after a ban on hunting was enforced in Kashmir in 1970, and the loss of pine forests had already increased contact between animals and people.
The increasing number of attacks by wild animals have forced Jammu and Kashmir authorities to set up control rooms across the mountainous region to fight man-animal conflict which is taking a heavy toll in the strife-torn region.
Almost two to three man-animal conflict reports are received daily from different parts of the Valley.
