Shivakumar was attacked by a tiger in Badipur Tiger Reserve, Karnataka. He stayed in the hospital for a month.
January 4, 2016: Shivakumar is a Watcher with the Karnataka Forest Department in Bandipur Tiger Reserve and has been working in the reserve for the last 20 years. The 40-year-old was sworn into permanent duty just seven months ago.
On the November 19, 2015, at 17.30pm, he was attacked by a tiger while on an operation to immobilize and translocate it. The tiger was responsible for almost six human attacks and several livestock attacks over the two months preceding the event.
When the attack happened Shivakumar was tying live bait to a lantana bush under which the tiger was hiding, on the instructions of the Bandipur Forest Officials. The tiger charged and bit Shivakumar on the leg, throwing him down to the ground. In a bid to save his vital organs from damages, he went face down and held on to clumps of grass to prevent the tiger from pulling him back into the undergrowth. The tiger then let go of his leg and bit his head.
Instantly, a Forest Official fired a shot that missed the tiger. The second shot by another official missed yet again. The tiger had Shivakumars’ head in his jaws and there was no room for error. Another miss could have blown off Shivakumar’s skull.
However, the third shot hit the tiger in the left ear at point blank range. The tiger was killed instantly and collapsed on top of Shivakumar. The tiger’s body was pulled off Shivakumar by Forest Department staff to reveal severe injuries on Shivakumar’s head and leg.
WTI’s Nagaraj Bhat handing over the cheque to Shivakumar
The wounds were extremely grave and timely first aid by the WTI veterinarian Dr Shantanu Kalambi helped stop the severe blood loss. The WTI vet then assisted in transporting Shivakumar to the Begur Government Medical Centre where he was transferred into a waiting ambulance to be rushed to JSS Hospital in Mysore. He stayed in the hospital for a month and is still recovering at home from that near fatal attack. Shivakumar still has two more months before he is fully fit.
On January 4, 2016, WTI’s Field Officer, Nagaraj Bhat, handed a cheque of Rs 25,000 to Shivakumar as an emergency fund for treatment and care. The support was provided through WTI’s ex-gratia scheme which is part of Accidental Insurance Scheme of the Van Rakshak Project (VRP).
WTI staff at Bandipur Tiger Reserve will continue to check the progress of his health at regular intervals. WTI in collaboration with Forest Department and Aircel runs a Mobile Veterinary Service (MVS) unit at the Bandipur. The MVS facilitates the rescue of wildlife in Bandipur and immediately responds to all wildlife emergencies reported from the region. It is a dedicated mobile unit with a trained veterinarian and a caretaker, who would be ready at any time of the day to respond to any such emergencies.
