The Buxa Tiger Reserve (BTR) authorities in the Alipurduar district will introduce sirens and megaphones to alert people in case wild animals enter their area and prevent them from crowding where an animal has been located.

The initiative, foresters said, will reduce human-animal conflicts and help them rescue the animal and send it back to the forest.

“We are getting 20 sirens and 18 megaphones. These would be handed over to our staff so that they can use them to alert people. While the sirens would be used to disperse the mob that often gathers at the spot where a wild animal is sighted, the megaphones will be used to make people aware in daily and weekly rural markets on the dos and don'ts if an animal strays into their village,” said Apurba Sen, the field director of the BTR.

In north Bengal, whenever a wild animal is sighted in a human habitat, hundreds swarm to catch a glimpse.

“Nowadays, most people have smartphones and they shoot videos and click photos of the animal and make reels to upload on social media. That's why there is a big crowd every time a wild animal strays into human habitation. But rescuing an animal while handling the crowd gets tough,” said a senior forest official.

He said that there have been instances when the animal has panicked and attacked the crowd, leading to injuries and deaths.

“On some cases, so many people crowd the site that our vehicles cannot even get close to the location,” the official added.

The sirens, he said, would help address the issue. “When an animal is sighted in a locality and we are informed, our team will blow the siren. It will pass the message that people are advised to stay indoors and not crowd near the animal,” said the forester.

The megaphones will also be used by the forest staff in such cases.

“They will also be used to tell people to move away from the animal in case they are still lingering there after sirens have sounded,” the forest official added.