A tragic incident occurred in Bahraich when a two-and-a-half-year-old girl, Anjali, was killed in a wolf attack, raising the district’s death toll from such incidents to 10 since March 18. The attack happened early Monday morning in Garethi Gurdattsingh village, located under the jurisdiction of the Hardi police station.
According to forest officials, the wolf entered the house where Anjali was sleeping with her mother, lifted the girl, and later left her mutilated body about 500 meters from the village. Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Ajit Pratap Singh reported that the animal had eaten both of the girl’s hands, and her body bore multiple puncture wounds. The police sent her body for a post-mortem examination upon receiving the information.
This recent attack follows another incident late Sunday night, in which a 56-year-old woman, Kamla Devi, was injured in a separate wolf attack in Kotiya village, also under the Hardi police station area. She was promptly taken to the community health center in Mahsi and later referred to the district hospital for further treatment.
The village head, Uma Kant Dixit, expressed the growing fear among the villagers after the incident, noting that the house where the girl was attacked had no door, allowing the wolf to easily enter. District Magistrate Monika Rani and Superintendent of Police Vrinda Shukla visited the village to console the grieving family and assured them that efforts to capture the wolves are ongoing.
The forest department has already captured four wolves, but attacks continue unabated in the Mahsi Tehsil area. In just the past two days, four people, including two children, have been injured, and another girl child has been killed. Despite the use of infrared drone cameras, the elusive wolves have managed to evade capture, with the latest sighting occurring on Sunday night.
Veterinary expert Dr. Deepak Verma, who is part of the ongoing Operation Bhediya, mentioned that there is a distinct pattern to these wolf attacks, which tend to repeat every two to three days. The wolves have been consistently attacking new villages, typically located five to six kilometers from the previous attack sites. Although the wolves’ locations were traced along the river basin on Monday morning, they managed to disappear before capture.
Sources By Agencies