Two fishermen killed in tiger attacks

Two fishermen were killed in tiger attacks near Kalash Islands at Sundarbans in South 24 Parganas district.

A senior forest official said Dinesh Maity and Bachhu Bera were picked up by tiger as they were netting crab near Kalash Islands in separate incidents since last night.

While Dinesh, who was accompanied by five-six fellow fishermen, was attacked by a big cat and picked up at midnight, Bacchu was similarly picked up by a carnivore today morning from another group of fishermen catching crab, the official said.

Both back to back attacks took place at the same spot but it was not immediately confirmed if the same tiger was involved, the official said.

The bodies of both persons were recovered from nearby by villager/forest personnel today, the official said.

The duo hailed from Kultali, located in the fringes of the Sundarbans.

In December last year, Hamid Ali Seikh (32), a fisherman was killed in a tiger attack after he went to Chulkati jungle of Sundarbans.

A pall of gloom descended on the family members of the victim at Kultali of South 24 Parganas.

He went to Chulkati jungle to catch fish. When the victim was engrossed in his job, a tiger came out of the jungle and swam across the river and attacked the victim from the behind.

Others with him attacked the tiger with weapons and the tiger fled. The victim was rescued from the water in serious condition. The victim died on the way to the hospital.