By Siraj Khan
Banke, Nov. 16: The Bengal tigers that were frequently seen in the Gavar area of Banke have now reached the Narainapur area of the district. The locals of the area are terrified after a tiger that was seen in the Banke National Park (BNP) area recently entered the national forest of Narainapur.

According to residents of the area, the place became unsafe after a tiger entered the settlement and killed Lakhan Gadaria of Panditpuruwa-4 of the Narainapur Rural Municipality and one of his cows.
Ramesh Gadaria, a local of Ward No. 4, said that locals are scared to leave the house after the incident. Lakhan who had gone to graze a cow was eaten by a tiger. Even the sound of tigers growling could be heard nearby, he added. He also demanded that the tiger be brought under control as soon as possible as it came from the park.

Inspector Basanta Gautam, in-charge of the Area Police Office, Bhojbhagwanpur, said that half of Lakhan’s body and a half-eaten cow was found in the forest five kilometres east of Gorbadhan Dham, a tourist spot in Narainapur.
He said that residents of the area have been urged to remain vigilant after the tiger killed Lakhan, and information has been circulated not to go into the forest alone. Earlier, two and a half months ago, two tigers dragged an Indian national from the road and ate him in Gavar. After the incident, BNP had mobilized a team including two domestic elephants to control the man-eating tigers in the area.

However, the team has not yet been able to control the tiger. Fears and panic have increased among locals after four tigers were seen on the CCTV camera kept by the park.
Narainapur Rural Municipality has demanded that elephants be provided in the area for the safety of the tourists as a large number of religious tourists visit the premises of Gorbaddhan Dham and Barfani Baba daily.Meanwhile, the BNP has urged the public to stay vigilant.