'Bear' kills farmer

TT, Gangtok, Feb. 4: A farmer was killed by a wild animal, suspected to be a Himalayan black bear, when he had gone to collect fodder for his cattle in a remote village in North Sikkim yesterday evening.

Pintso Bhutia, 53, was a resident of Kabi village, 45km from here.

North district collector Tsewang Gyatcho said Bhutia had gone to the nearby forest to collect fodder for the cattle. 

"When he didn't return, villagers went in search for him and found his body. The body has been ripped off by a wild animal which we are confident is a Himalayan black bear that has been wandering in the area for the past one month," said the collector.

He said around 30 goats had been killed by the wild animal in the area.

The chief wildlife warden, C.S. Rao, informed that the family of Bhutia had been handed over a compensation of Rs 1.5 lakh. He said a team had entered the forest and would try to tranquillise the animal.