Vidarbha, Amravati, India: A tribal man was killed in a tiger attack while collecting bamboo in the Matakhol forest with his father and uncle. The incident, which occurred on November 3, has caused widespread panic in the Harisal area.

Hundreds of local tribal members have begun a sit-in protest, demanding that the tiger responsible for the attack be captured or killed. The victim has been identified as 32-year-old Hariram Gangaram Dhikar, a resident of Kesarpur in Chikhaldara tehsil, and he leaves behind three children.

According to reports, Hariram, along with his father Gangaram and uncle Chintaram, entered the Matakhol forest in the Harisal range of the Gugamal Wildlife Division of the Melghat Tiger Reserve at 9 AM to gather bamboo. They intended to cut bamboo in three different directions before regrouping at one location.

After tying up their bamboo loads, Gangaram and Chintaram regrouped. When Hariram did not return, they went into the forest to look for him. After walking a short distance, they discovered bloodstains.

Upon noticing signs of a struggle on the ground, both Gangaram and Chintaram hurried back to the village to alert the local tribal members and forest department officials. They all returned to the forest, where they found Hariram Dhikar’s body lying in a pool of blood. The tiger reserve staff conducted a panchnama at the scene and sent the body to the hospital for a post-mortem examination.