Daulat Singh Shaktawat has spent the last 20 years caring for and protecting Bengal tigers. He is a forest officer at Ranthambore National Park in northern India and has always enjoyed working with these incredible creatures. The day he got the call that a tiger had wandered a bit too far, was not like unlike any other day. Except for the fact that he suffered a tiger attack that day. Not only does he not blame the tiger for the attack, but who he does blame is surprising.
Typical Day On The Job Until Suffering A Tiger Attack
Thrillist shares that the forest officer received a call "informing him that a male tiger had crossed the Ranthambore reserve boundary, killed a buffalo, and was entering the bordering village of Bhuri Pahari." Shaktawat was tasked with getting the tiger back into its respective area as quickly as possible.
However, when he arrived on the scene he knew that this mission was not going to go quickly. A large crowd had gathered around the tiger. "There were at least 60 forest personnel and police already in the area trying to control a stone-throwing mob." There was a ton of fear, shouting, and even a man armed with a tranquilizing gun. However, Shaktawat pointed out that not only was there not a good line of sight to shoot the tiger, but in order for the tranquilizer to work there needed to be complete silence.
This attempted explanation lead to chaos and stones being thrown at him and the tiger alike. The tiger retreated further into the bushes to avoid the chaos. While following an agitated and fearful tiger into an area "with low visibility was against protocol" the forest officer did so anyway. Not only for the people's sakes but for the tiger's as well. Unfortunately, this left him wide open for a tiger attack.
Tiger Attack And Who Is To Blame
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Shortly after entering the bush, Shaktawat heard a roar close by. The tiger pounced out from in front of him, and before he could even raise his tranquilizing gun, it had him pinned. Shaktawat described the tiger attack, sharing details about the "massive weight of the tiger on him." As well as how it dug it's claws into his right hand and his jaw. Talk about terrifying!
He even admits that he began to mentally prepare for his own death. Suddenly, and without warning the tiger removed itself from the forest ranger and disappeared. When he looked around, Shaktawat saw no people and no tiger. However, he did feel a "ball-like shape hanging next to his cheek" which happened to be his eye, having popped out of the socket.
While the adrenaline and shock stopped the pain temporarily, the pain eventually came and Shaktawat admitted that "it was agonizing." With the injuries he sustained it would be understandable if Shaktawat was mad at the tiger for attacking him. However, he does not place blame on the wild cat.
Instead, he blames the crowd for his tiger attack. He told Thrillist, "I was angry at the crowd. I blame the unruly and crazy mob — they infuriated the cornered tiger so much that he mauled me." I suppose in the tiger's defense, how is it supposed to know a nice human from a rock-throwing one?
Although his injuries were substantial, he made a full recovery and is back at work at the park. He admits that even with the tiger attack, "he couldn't imagine being anywhere else."
