Mob tries to set helpless bear ablaze in Kashmir, probe ordered | NDTV.com
I thought we Indians were better than this.
The Jammu and Kashmir government has ordered an inquiry into an attempt by a jeering crowd to set a terrified bear, which strayed into a village, on fire.
Footage of the attack that happened nearly a week ago in the state's Shopian district shows the bear trying to climb a tree in desperation as a crowd gathered around.
The villagers are seen tying a burning cloth to a pole, raising it towards the bear and poking the animal. The bear tries to perch itself further up on the tree's branches until it's unable to go up any further.
Soon engulfed in flames, the bear eventually climbed down and managed to escape, but its fate was not known.
"An inquiry has been ordered. A senior government official will hold the inquiry," Jammu and Kashmir Forest Minister Mian Altaf told NDTV.
"The bear had entered the village, but the locals had no intention to kill it. They had just gathered to watch the animal. I am told the bear ran away without being harmed," he said.
The attack was reported just two days before the Union Environment Ministry was due to host a global conference on bear conservation in New Delhi.
I thought we Indians were better than this.