India: The wolf that killed seven children was caught

India Northern state of Uttar Pradesh Authorities have captured one of the wolves believed to have killed seven children and a woman.

Forest Department A 25-member team of the IDF began searching sugarcane fields in Bahraich district after a pack of wolves attacked people in more than 30 villages, killing eight people in just six weeks.

Forest department officials believe that the captured wolf is part of a pack of three killer wolves roaming in Bahraich.

More than 50,000 people in various villages are in fear due to these attacks, due to which the forest department has deployed 150 forest department employees and more than 200 security personnel.

More than 50 people in the district managed to escape the attacks of these animals. Wolves were tracked using drones equipped with cameras and thermal mapping software.

The captured male wolf was first spotted by a thermal imaging drone at 11pm (local time) on Wednesday and eventually tracked down by his footprints.

Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Sanjay Srivastava told NDTV that ‘after a difficult effort, they successfully captured the wolf from the floodplain of Sesaya village at around 10:45 am local time.

The wolf was sedated and taken to a zoo in Gorakhpur district.

“The situation is a bit complicated because this particular species of wildlife is very cunning in nature,” Akashdeep Budhavan, a forest department official, told Reuters news agency.

“We have advised the villagers not to sleep in the open with their children.”

Although leopard and tiger attacks are regularly reported in India, wolf attacks are rare.

Authorities in Bahraich have installed loudspeakers and floodlights to deter the animals.

Mr Budhwan said the department would use elephant dung to keep wolf packs away from residential areas.

He said, ‘Burning this waste will create the illusion of presence of elephants in the area.’ Wolves avoid areas where larger animals live, he added.

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The first attack was reported on July 17, when a one-year-old child was mauled by a wolf.

The latest attack was reported on August 26 when a wolf entered a house and killed a seven-year-old boy sleeping in the yard with his mother.

During the summer, it is common for villagers in India to sleep on mats or cots outside their homes, where it is cold, leaving victims vulnerable.

The mother of the seven-year-old child said that a wolf entered the house at night and grabbed the child (Firooz) by the neck and ran away.

He told India Today that ‘I tried to save the wolf by pulling its legs, but was not successful. The wolf dragged Feroze about 200 meters into a field.

Finally, the child was rescued and taken to the hospital with injuries. The child’s mother said he survived the attack.

According to Divisional Forest Officer Ajit Singh, who oversees the operation, ‘wolves become cannibals after acquiring a taste for human flesh.’

He told The New Indian Express that much of India is currently experiencing heavy monsoon rains, and the floods may have forced wolves to come towards human populations in search of food.