This is the second tiger to be declared a maneater in UP in the last two months — the first being the one in Faizabad.

The victim has been identified as Ram Dayal (55). On Thursday morning, he had gone to the nearby jungle. Next morning, Dayal’s mutilated body was discovered. Later in the evening, the tiger attacked Anita, a resident of Alalganj, just outside her house. “Anita is undergoing treatment and her condition is stable,” said Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) of North Kheri, K K Singh.

The latest killing has created unrest in the area, and senior officials have rushed to pacify the villagers.

Three elephants, pulled out of combing operations for the Faizabad maneater, have been deployed in Lakimpur Kheri.

According to officials, the tiger had strayed out of the Kishanpur Sanctuary and entered the sugarcane fields on the periphery.

It has killed all its victims either in the jungle or in these fields. Its first victim was 16-year-old Pillu Singh of Tanda on January 5.

“Contrary to the animals’ normal tendencies, this tiger does not avoid human beings. On January 9, when it killed 15-year-old Pooja of Nahrosa village in sugarcane fields, it did not move away from the body even after a crowd had gathered nearby. It left only when gunshots were fired in the air,” said DFO (South Kheri) R C Jha.

Chief Wildlife Warden B K Patnaik said: “We will explore all options of trapping the tiger before shooting it.” Patnaik is currently visiting Lakhimpur Kheri.

Forest researcher A N Singh has been given the authority to shoot the tiger. He, along with veterinary doctor Utkarsh Shukla, had visited the site of the tiger’s latest kill on Friday. “It is a nearly eight-year-old male tiger. It has shown a tendency to attack human beings,” said Singh.

Rajesh Gopal, member secretary of the National Tiger Conservation Authority, said he will visit Lakhimpur Kheri on Saturday to take stock of the situation.

Asked to comment on a second tiger being declared a maneater in two months, he said: “The recent incidents call for proper management in the fringe area of the forest. Even the core area should be managed better. For long term solutions, a buffer zone should be developed to avoid such man-animal conflicts.”

Now, tiger attacks a man in Jagdishpur village
A tiger, which had strayed into Ghazipur from Bihar in December, attacked a man in Jagdishpur village on Friday evening. A few villagers spotted the tiger in the fields.

“Soon a crowd gathered where it was hiding and poked the tiger with sticks. In an effort to flee, the tiger attacked Mahabir Singh and injured him. The victim is undergoing treatment,” said DFO (Basti) J K Singh. Forest officials have cordoned off the area.

“We are trying to give the tiger a safe passage into the jungle area through Gonda,” said Singh. The tiger was rarely spotted and forest officials were tracking it by its pugmarks. Meanwhile, another stray tiger has been reported from Bahraich.