58-year-old gardener injured in sloth bear attack in Valparai

COIMBATORE: A 58-year-old man was injured in a sloth bear attack in Valparai on Thursday morning. According to the forest department, Lakshmanan, who was employed as a gardener in the house of an estate manager in the ‘old’ Valparai area, had come for work in the morning when the incident happened. “He was about to start work when a bear emerged from the dark and attacked him,” said a staff member. On hearing his loud cries, the neighbours rushed to his help, while the bear retreated into the forest area. The worker was taken to the estate hospital and then to a private hospital in Coimbatore, where he is under intense treatment. Meanwhile, in another wildlife-related incident, a sloth bear broke into a PDS outlet in Lovedale locality and devoured the stock of ration items on Wednesday night. It also damaged a grocery shop located nearby and ate some food items kept for sale. The forest department staff further increased vigil.