A 24-year-old tribal youth was mauled to death by an animal, suspected to be a tiger, at a tribal settlement inside the core area of the Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary on Thursday.
Forest officials identified the victim as Baburaj, son of Kullan of the remote Kurichiyad Kattunayakka settlement.
Baburaj was reported missing since Thursday noon after he went to the forest to collect firewood, his relatives said. Baburaj is survived by wife Sunitha.
His partially devoured body was found nearly a km from his house on Friday morning in a search operation by forest officials and tribesmen. The officials identified pugmarks of a tiger near the body.
A group of officials, including District Collector Kesavendrakumar, warden of WWS S. Mohanan Pillai, Assistant Conservator of Forest, Special Investigation and Protection Wing, P. Dhaneshkumar, and N.K. Abraham, Sulthan Bathery Tahsildar, visited the site.
Mr. Kesavendrakumar held discussions with the tribesmen and assured them that he would recommend to the government a solatium of Rs. 10 lakh to the family and a job for a kin of the victim.
Four surveillance cameras would be installed in the area to monitor the movement of the animal and a cage would be set to trap it.
A seven-member rapid protection force team would patrol the area round-the-clock, Mr. Pillai told The Hindu .
Meanwhile, a group of people attacked the office of the wildlife warden at Sulthan Bathery. Two window panes of the building were destroyed in the attack.
