Jharkhand man, daughter awarded for bravery in tackling tiger that entered their house

The Forest Department of the Jharkhand government on Friday felicitated a man and his daughter for their bravery in the rescue of a tiger, which entered their home.

A male tiger had entered the house of Purandar Mahto in Mardu village in Muri police station area, around 4.30 am on June 25. Mahto's daughter Sonika Kumari and another girl tactfully managed to exit the house, an official said.

Mahto, along with his daughter, then locked the door from the outside. After locking the animal inside the house, he informed the Forest Department. A rescue team from the Palamau Tiger Reserve (PTR) reached the location and successfully caged the animal, he said.

The next day, the tiger was released in the PTR, he added.

Mahto and his daughter, a Class X student, were given a cheque for Rs 1.20 lakh for their bravery, and a separate cheque of Rs 21,000 for their contribution in forest promotion and conservation on the occasion of 76th Van Mahotsav in Ranchi.

Assembly Speaker Rabindra Nath Mahato handed over the cheques in the presence of Parliamentary Affairs Minister Radhakrishna Kishore and other dignitaries.

Addressing the programme, the speaker said pollution was on the rise because the number of trees was declining.

"This is everyone's duty to plant trees and make our atmosphere pollution-free," he said.

Kishore, who is also the state finance minister, said Jharkhand has around 30 per cent forest cover, which used to be between 45 and 55 per cent in 1960-70.

"There has been a decline in the forest cover. We need to plant trees and increase the forest cover as it was in the past," he said.