Bhavnagar: In a latest incident of human-animal conflict near Gir in Gujarat, a man was attacked by a lion near his house on Monday morning.
Locals succeeded in driving the animal away by pelting stones at it and shouting at the top of their voices. The man was rushed to hospital where he is undergoing treatment. Locals have demanded action by the government to prevent such incidents in the future.
A video of the incident has now gone viral on social media with users inquiring about the man’s condition.
The incident occurred at Garjiya village in the Palitana taluka of the Bhavnagar district. According to local reports, the victim, identified as Kalubhai Boghabhai Gamara, a Maldhari resident of the village, was attacked by th
e lion near his home in the morning. The animal allegedly pounced on him, knocked him to the ground and clawed at his leg, leaving him with serious injuries, as reported by News18.
The 46-second clip showed the lion pinning the man to the ground as he desperately tried to protect himself. A heavy vehicle can be seen parked in the background. Villagers can be heard screaming. Some stones were also seen hitting the animal.
Disturbed by the commotion, the lion is then seen moving away towards the nearby forest. Gamara was rescued by neighbours and taken to the Mansinhji Government Hospital in Palitana. Villagers said that he suffered multiple injuries during the attack.
There were mixed reactions on social media after the video started doing the rounds. One user claimed that this is the fourth such incident over the last one month. Another one called the situation alarming.
Several Netizens inquired about the man’s health while one said that such incidents take place as people attempt to get close to the animals in order to record videos or make reels.
An expert on the subject said that overcrowding at Gir is resulting in the straying of the animals into villages.
While over 4,000 tigers in the country are spread across several reserves and national parks, the 1,000-odd Asiatic lions are cramped at a single location in Saurashtra, Gujarat.