A farmer was killed in a tiger attack near a village under Bandipur Tiger Reserve on Tuesday. The deceased is Shivalingappa (60) of Chowdahalli.

Shivalingappa was herding cows on the outskirts of the village, under Gopalaswamy Hill range, when a tiger attacked him. The villagers rushed to his rescue. The tiger, which was still hiding nearby, came out of fear due to the noise and escaped. The villagers ran helter-skelter, seeing the tiger.

The villagers staged a snap protest on the spot, against the Forest department personnel. They alleged that the department is not serious on the combing operation. They tried to drag Bandipur Range Forest Officer Srinivas. However, RFO Naveen Kumar, ACF K Paramesh and others pacified the crowd.

Massive hunt for tiger

The back-to-back killing by the tiger in a month's time has prompted the Karnataka Forest Department to order massive hunt for the tiger.

In a statement issued by Jagat Ram, Additional Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (Project Tiger), the department has ordered that the elusive tiger will either be captured or shot-down within the next 24 to 48 hours and the department sought the cooperation of the public.