Superstition hampers hunting of maneater wolves
The customs and beliefs of the rural people and their little knowledge
about the behaviour of wild animals are proving to be the biggest
hurdle in hunting maneater wolves who continue to stalk the villages
of Lal Ganj tehsil in the Rae Bareli district of Uttar
Pradesh.
Whenever the villagers sight a wolf, they prefer chasing it away
to killing it. They believe that if any one of them kills the
animal he or she would face the wrath of god, and the hunter's
entire family and lineage would be destroyed, says B K P Sinha,
chief conservator of forests (central zone) and overall in-charge
of the operation to kill the maneaters of the area.
Since February 24, the wolves are suspected to have killed five
children and injured four others in the villages.
All the incidents, says Sinha, occurred along River Lone which
has three prominent tributaries, providing an ideal terrain for
the wolves to stalk and hunt.
The villagers in the area do not cremate their dead and the wolves
find it easier to get to human flesh. This is one of the reasons,
according to Sinha, which has made the wolves maneaters.
To make matters worse, wolves thrive there because tigers and
leopards, who are their natural enemies, are not found in the
area. Besides, the wolves have also turned to human flesh because
the small animals they usually hunt have become scarcer in the
area.
He says police and army personnel who have been deployed to assist
in the wolf hunting are ignorant of the wild animals' behaviour.
In addition, the locals, particularly those possessing licensed
weapons, do not realise the seriousness of the situation as they
live in pucca houses and are well protected.
UNI
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