Daijiworld Media Network - Beltangady (SP)

Beltangady, Mar 26: In a tragic incident which happened on the evening of Saturday March 25 near Manjotti here, a wild buffalo sank its horns into a farmer who lost his life. The deceased was Dombayya Poojary (53), resident of Renkedaguthu in Casba village here.

Dombayya was working in a plantation surrounded by forests on Saturday evening when a wild buffalo suddenly attacked him with horns. He suffered serious injuries. Although arrangements were made to bring him to the government hospital here, he succumbed to his injuries on the way.

Dombayya Poojary was hired by John Lobo from Sudemugeru here to work in his plantation at Manjotti Annappakody. At around 4 pm on Saturday, the killer buffalo that was in belligerent mood came running from somewhere and attacked Dombayya in his chest and hands with its horns. John Lobo, who was present inside the plantation then, immediately summoned the ambulance and took Dombayya to hospital but the worker did not survive the journey.

It is said that the wild buffalo had earlier got stuck in a trap laid by someone. With lot of effort, it had succeeded in getting out of the trap and therefore it was in attacking mood, locals said. Therefore, efforts made to shoo it away failed. The area is frequented by wild animals and therefore the farmers of the region are habituated to lay traps for wild animals, it is gathered. Dombayya, who was working for John Lobo since the last many years, is survived by wife two daughters, and a son.

In the meanwhile, forest department sources denied the involvement of wild buffalo in this attack. They have insisted that it must be a domestic buffalo belonging to someone. They base their theory on the basis of their information that no wild buffaloes were sighted in the area in the recent past, and that the wounds appear to have been inflicted by the horns of normal buffalo not the wild one. It is also said that the buffalo had a nylon rope around its neck. Initially it was thought that the rope could have been part of a trap but now it is being said that nylon ropes are not used in traps.