Friends save man from tiger's jaws

KOLKATA: A group of 14 fishermen were pushing their boat from the bank of Kalas Island, on the southern tip of the Sunderbans, on Friday morning when a blood-curdling roar paralyzed them for an instant. As they watched in horror a tiger jumped 20 feet in one bound, fangs and claws bared, and latched on to 33-year-old Purna Das.

Running for their lives, the lucky 13 turned around and saw the tiger dragging Purna towards a bush, fangs buried in his necks. Mustering courage, they picked up sticks and attacked the tiger.

It lashed out to protect its prey but Purna's friends weren't going to let him die. A few strong blows on its nose and forehead, and the tiger realized Purna was more trouble than a meal. It vanished into the forest. But when the fishermen pulled the semiconscious and bleeding Purna to the trawler, there was a new predicament. Low tide had set in, preventing them from sailing into the midstream.

They waited from 12 noon to 5 pm for the high tide, nervously watching the jungle. Purna moaned and trembled in pain, drifting in and out of consciousness. The only treatment they could give him was to tie a gamcha (towel) around his neck to stop the bleeding, and wash the wounds with hot water. They had lost Rs 4,000 during the last trip in June and had decided to fish in the deep sea for hilsa, even though it put their lives at risk. They had travelled 100 km to Kalas Island only to be stuck with a sinking friend and a hungry tiger a few metres away. Trawler driver Gopal Das said, "We had a bad omen at the very beginning.

Whenever we put the net in the Bay of Bengal, it got entangled in the propellers. It was windy and the waves got so high that we thought it was too risky. All of us decided to return to Kalas Island to untangle the fishing net. The tiger attack took us completely by surprise though we were keeping a watch. It was the first time I saw a tiger and battled it. I do not want to see it ever again."

Another fisherman, Krishna Das of Shanki Jahan village in Kultaoli, said Purna was unconscious by the time they reached Jamtala in Kultoli. "He was running high fever and was delirious. The doctor asked us to take him to a good hospital. We started for SSKM Hospital (in Kolkata) and reached at 12 midnight. He was operated at 3 am on Saturday but he is still battling for life," Das said.