Srinagar, Aug 1 (IANS): A bear attacked a farmer on Thursday in Jammu and Kashmir’s Anantnag district which created panic in the area.

Officials said that the farmer was working in his agricultural field in the Kokernag area of the district when a bear attacked him.

“The victim identified as Ghulam Nabi Muglu of Loharsanzi village in Kokernag tehsil was shifted to a sub-district hospital in Kokernag town in injured condition. He has been referred by doctors to a government medical college hospital in Anantnag town for specialised treatment,” officials said.

The bear attack has created panic in the whole area and the officials have assured of the villagers.

On Monday evening, a 50-year-old woman lost her life after being attacked by a wild bear in the Mirpora village in North Kashmir.

A man was critically injured after a bear attacked him in the Handwara area of Kupwara district on Thursday.

Incidents of Man-Animal conflict have alarmingly increased in Kashmir for some time now. This is attributed by ecologists to the growing human and wildlife population that has brought the two in direct conflict with each other.

Due to the encroachment of natural habitats of wildlife by humans, the area for animals has shrunken. Due to the depletion of their natural habitats, the wild animals have moved towards human settlements looking for food, shelter, etc. The ecological solution to Man-Animal conflict is to respect and preserve the habitats of wild animals and ensure non-interference into such habitats by human beings.

The staff of the Wildlife Protection Department has been catching bears and leopards that are found prowling in human settlements by using tranquillizer guns and then relocating them to their natural habitats.