FRONT PAGE | Wednesday, November 4, 2009 | Email | Print | 
2 militants killed with bear hands, another mauled in Kashmir cave
Khursheed Wani | Srinagar
Were preparing edibles that probably attracted the wild animal back to its hibernation spot
In the first such reported incident in Kashmir’s 20-year history of insurgency, a bear killed two senior terrorists who had occupied his hibernation den and were using it as a hideout. Their two accomplaices, however, escaped the wild attack, police and Army said.
The mauled militants, belonging to Reasi pocket of Jammu province, were operating in the Pir Panchal range of forests. Two automatic AK-56 rifles were recovered from near their bodies. Police also found some crumbs of food and pudding the militants had made in the den, which is located within the forest area on the periphery of Kulgam district. Locals say that Dandloo Nar Hakwara is a dense forest inhabited by black bears in large numbers.
Sources among the Defence personnel say that it may be the first such incident of its kind in the Valley. Terrorists dying due to extreme weather conditions or being swept away by blizzards and snow storms have been reported in the past, but killing by any type of wild animal has not occurred so far.
The dead terrorists have been identified as Mohammad Amin Malik alias Qaiser and Bashir Ahmed Jaral alias Saifullah, both belonging to the Hizbul Mujahideen outfit. The Superintendent of Police in South Kashmir’s Kulgam district, Kesav Ram Chaurasia, said that the terrorists had been quite active in the Pir Panchal range of mountains. He said that Qaisar had especially been active since the start of terror operations in the State in 1990.
Sources said that one of the injured militants ran away to a nearby village for treatment and the news spread immediately. Later, a joint party of the police and Army personnel went into the forest area and collected the bodies of the two slain terrorists.
Bears generally go into hibernation for several months after the onset of the winter season. But during the past several years, the lifestyle of bears has changed and they occasionally show up in populated areas even during the chilly winter months now.
The incidents of man-animal conflict have increased exponentially in Kashmir Valley during the past several years. Wildlife experts say that apart from encroachment in the wild habitat, the conflict situation in Kashmir has also resulted in an increase in the population of bears and leopards.
Following the outbreak of insurgency, the Valley’s residents had to hand over their weapons to police, which has also put a halt to animal poaching. “The forests were damaged in the subsequent years extensively and, in many areas, people encroached upon wild animals’ habitats. This overall phenomenon resulted in an increase in the instances of man-animal conflict,” said Dr Khursheed Ahmad, head of the faculty of Wildlife in Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences.
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