Royal Bengal Tiger kills forest guard in Orang; blanks fired to scare off predator, retrieve body

Mangaldoi, Aug 29: In a tragic incident highlighting the growing human-animal conflict in Assam, a Royal Bengal tiger killed a Home Guard, who was serving as a forest guard, in the Orang National Park and Tiger Reserve on Wednesday evening.

The deceased, identified as Dhanmoni Deka, a resident of Dipila-Hatimara in Darrang district, was on foot-patrol in the Bilpar anti-forest camp area alongside another forest staff when the attack occurred.

According to reports, the tiger ambushed Deka from behind, overpowering him before dragging him into the dense forest cover. His colleague was unable to intervene in time.

Following the incident, park authorities launched an immediate search operation, deploying elephants to locate Deka.

After four hours, the tiger was found approximately 1 km away, holding Deka's body in its jaws.

The authorities fired several blank rounds, prompting the tiger to leave the area and allowing them to recover Deka’s body.

Pradipta Baruah, the Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) and Field Director of the National Park and Tiger Project, told The Assam Tribune that Deka had been a dedicated and brave member of the park's staff since 2014.

He played a significant role in capturing a straying Royal Bengal tiger in Dhing, Nagaon district, earlier this year.

Baruah confirmed that Deka's family would receive compensation according to government guidelines.

Deka's body was taken to Mangaldai Civil Hospital for an autopsy before being handed over to his family.