After wolves in Bahraich killed at least eight people, with seven of them being kids, this is how villagers are coping with the growing menace.
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00:00sleeping with their children tied to their sarees,
00:02staying hungry to avoid defecating in the open,
00:05and patrolling at night with sticks
00:07were some ways in which people braved the terror of wolves in Uttar Pradesh's Biharach district.
00:12How will a bear pick up your child?
00:15How will a bear pick up your child?
00:16If he turns around, he won't be able to pick him up.
00:19Since 17th July 2024, wolves had killed 7 children and 1 adult
00:24and injured more than 50 people.
00:26A woman was attacked by a live wolf.
00:31More than 200 forest officials joined Operation Bheriya as the menace grew.
00:35The villagers said that 8 to 10 wolves prowled in the area
00:39and attacked as soon as they got a chance.
00:41People are being told to sleep inside the house,
00:43close the door of the house,
00:45lock the door and sleep,
00:46don't go out in the open.
00:48Lights have been set up at night.
00:50The electricity department has been told not to make noise in the lights.
00:54The people are also being told to patrol at night.
01:00People are being told to carry torches and sticks.
01:03Don't go out alone at night.
01:05Most of the villages where wolf attacks took place
01:08were situated on the banks of the Ghagra river.
01:10It was said that there was a possibility that the wolves' habitat had shrunk
01:14due to floods in the river,
01:16which is why they were venturing into human habitats.
01:19According to the New Indian Express,
01:21wolves had returned to this area after 20 years.
01:24In 2004, about 32 children were killed in attacks by wolves.
01:28Dehraich's divisional forest officer told BBC Hindi
01:32that wolves do not intend to kill children,
01:34but once they attack humans and become cannibals,
01:37they prefer humans as food and start preying on them instead of small animals.
01:41According to the forest department,
01:43an area of 35 km was affected by wolf attacks.
01:47The department is continuously trying.
01:49It has been successful in three cases.
01:52And the rest of the children are also being attacked by drones.
01:56Meanwhile, Mahasi MLA Sureshwar Singh accompanied villagers in patrolling with a gun.
02:02We have taken the gun because when we go in the middle of the people,
02:06their manoeuvres will decrease and our manoeuvres will increase.
02:12The forest department and administration have allocated a budget of Rs 20 lakh
02:17for the affected area.
02:18Barabanki divisional forest officer Akash Deep Bhadwan told the media
02:23that wolves generally live in packs of 6-10,
02:26but avoid areas of larger animals such as elephants.
02:29Therefore, they are planning to use elephant dung and urine
02:32to create the illusion that elephants are present
02:34and keep wolf packs away from residential areas.
02:38The administration is adopting various tactics to save people from wolf attacks.
02:48Keeping the safety of the children in mind,
02:52do not keep the children away from you.
02:56While going to play, be careful.
02:59And take a stick and a small axe with you.
03:05Keep the door of the house closed while sleeping at night.
03:09According to a report of the National Crime Records Bureau
03:12released on 4th December 2023,
03:141510 people lost their lives or were injured in animal attacks in 2022.
03:19The highest number of cases were reported in Maharashtra at 225,
03:23followed by Uttar Pradesh at 182.
03:26In UP, orders were issued to shoot man-eating wolves at site in Behraich.
03:30Section 11 of the Wildlife Protection Act 1972
03:34permits the killing of wild animals in certain cases
03:37when efforts to capture or sedate them don't work out.
03:40There is a lot of terrorism here.
03:42People are very scared of wolves.
03:44The team from the Wildlife Protection Act is coming and telling us
03:47to stay inside the house,
03:48keep the door closed while sleeping,
03:50apply mosquito repellent while sleeping,
03:52so that you can stay safe from the attacks.