Bear Attacks in Chhattisgarh: 2 Killed, 4 Injured in 24 Hours

Pendra | Correspondent: In Chhattisgarh’s Gaurela-Pendra-Marwahi district, bear attacks have claimed two lives and left four others seriously injured within 24 hours.
On Friday, a 13-year-old girl was fatally attacked by a bear. The following morning, four people were injured in two separate bear attacks, resulting in the death of a young man.

The first attack occurred in Dongratola village of Beljhiriya, Marwahi. Bihaan Lal Kewat’s 13-year-old daughter, Vidya Kewat, had gone to the farm to graze goats on Friday when she encountered a wild bear. The bear viciously mauled her, leaving severe injuries on her face and back, which led to her death.

The second attack took place on Saturday morning, also in Beljhiriya. Three young men from the village, Charan Singh Kherwar, Ram Kumar, and Sukkul Prasad, were out collecting mushrooms when a bear attacked them. The bear inflicted deep wounds on all three, severely injuring them. Sukkul Prasad sustained a fatal wound to his stomach and died on the spot. The bear also gravely injured another youth, clawing his face and gouging out an eye, while the third victim suffered head and back injuries.

Both injured youths were rushed to Marwahi Hospital with the help of a 108 emergency service.

In a third attack, Sevak Lal Yadav and Semlal Gond, residents of Kargikala, were attacked by a bear while visiting their fields on Saturday morning. Both sustained serious injuries and were also admitted to Marwahi Hospital.

Rising Incidents of Bear Attacks

According to reports, there have been over 20 bear attacks in the last one and a half months. Due to deforestation and dwindling food supplies in the forests, bears are increasingly venturing into populated areas, causing widespread panic among villagers.

Many now fear even going to their fields.

Villagers have described the bears as unusually aggressive in recent encounters and have criticized the forest department for neglecting the issue.