Search operations of the other staff member will resume on Sunday.
Karthik Narayana/ Flickr ( Representational Image)
One forest personnel died and another is feared to have drowned after their coracle capsized in the Kabini backwaters in Gundre Forest Range in Karnataka on Saturday. The mishap occurred as they tried to get hold of armed men who were illegally fishing in the reserve forest on their coracle. The area falls inside the Bandipur Tiger Reserve. On the other side of the backwaters, the forest area is part of the Nagarhole National Park. The deceased has been identified as 26-year-old Mahesh, while Shivaumar, 33, is missing. The two men were working as part of the patrolling staff in the area. Search operations to look for Shivakumar will be resumed on Sunday. T Balachandra, Chief Conservator of Forests and Director of Bandipur Tiger Reserve told The Hindu that the two staff members had received a tip off about the illegal fishing on Friday night from that area. A team led by Deputy Range Forest Officer Kumaraswamy and comprising forest guards, watchers and some staff on contracts had zeroed in on the intruders. However, the team was overpowered and outnumbered by the men who were illegally fishing as they suddenly attacked the forest staff from the other side using their coracles. Knowing that they were outnumbered, the team of forest officials were forced to retreat and during this time, one of the coracles of the forest department staff capsized as the intruders shot in the air to scare them. Out of the four guards, one of them could swim back safely to the shore while one staff member was rescued by a reinforcement team by a DB Kuppe range, however, the other two unfortunately could not manage to swim back. Officials said even though Mahesh was known to be a good swimmer, both of them reportedly got entangled in a fishnet. While Mahesh’s body has been retrieved, attempts are being made to locate Shivakumar. Meanwhile, the armed intruders in the reverse forest area escaped. Star of Mysore reported Shivakumar hailed from a tribal hamlet in Hediyala Range of the Bandipur forest and Mahesh had incidentally got the forest department job as a compensatory measure after his father had died on duty. Reacting to the death, Manjunath J, an activist, and member of the Wilderness Club in Bengaluru, said, “The government has money for all kinds of development activities, including five star facilities for tourism, but no basic facilities available for staff to fight poaching. Not even for life jackets, patrol boats or ropes.”
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