Bison gores tea garden resident to death

JALPAIGURI: Man-animal conflict led to yet another death at Mogolkata tea estate in Banerhat on Monday. The bison that had strayed out of the Totapara forest also injured a few others before it died under the effect of sedatives.

Locals said that a total of three bison were first spotted roaming in the area around 8am. Soon as word spread, people thronged the tea estate to get a glimpse of the animals. Though foresters reached the spot within an hour and tried hard to disperse the mob, little could be done.

Irritated at the continuous hooting by bystanders, while two of the herd retreated into the forest, the third bison charged at the mob. As the people tried to scamper away, Suresh Oraon, 30, fell down amidst the chaos. The angry animal then lifted Oraon with its horns and tossed him to the ground. He was immediately taken to Jalpaiguri Sadar Hospital, but succumbed to his injuries later in the day.

A few others were also injured as a part of the crowd resorted to stone pelting after all efforts to drive the bison fell flat. Bewildered at the mayhem, forest department officials finally darted the animal. But on reaching Totapara forest, foresters found that the bison had died under the effect of the tranquillizer, which is a common trend among the species.

"We were left with no alternative but to dart the animal. It had already injured a tea garden resident and was in an aggressive mood. We had to tranquillize it before it attacked and injured more people," said a senior forest official.