This is the fifth human death in the last seven months in Pench buffer area, and the ninth in the last four years. Two deaths were also reported in territorial forests, which have overlapping boundaries with Pench.
Irate villagers damaged two forest department vehicles and also attacked forest staff who reached the spot to launch rescue operations immediately after learning that a woman was killed in a tiger attack.
When forest officials and staff reached the spot, angry villagers attacked them, injuring two forest guards seriously. Some forest guards and other personnel sustained minor injuries. Video of the incident shows village youths breaking the windowpanes of two govt vehicles. Local police help was sought to pacify the crowd.
The forest department has released immediate assistance of Rs5 lakh to the kin of the victim's family. The process to release the remaining compensation has been initiated. In Maharashtra, a victim's family gets Rs25 lakh compensation, the highest in the country, in case of death due to wild animal attacks.
Sources said the evening incident could have been avoided had the villagers been alerted. Earlier in the day, farmer Shyam Dilip Sirsam was attacked by a tiger but was saved due to the pesticide spraying machine on his back. He suffered minor injuries and went to Deolapar for treatment and failed to tell fellow villagers about the incident.
When forest staff learned about it, they patrolled the area and burst crackers to drive away the tiger. However, victim Kumbhare was unaware of the tiger movement near her farm and was killed in the attack.
Comment: Related: 349 people killed in tiger attacks during past 5 years in India