SHIMLA, Dec 16 — Unseasonal winters and reduced snowfall are driving bears into villages in the upper Shimla region, leading to a rise in livestock attacks that locals say were rare a decade ago.
In the Rampur subdivision alone, two cows were found dead inside cowsheds about a fortnight ago after bears broke in, forest officials said. Traps were later set up, leading to the capture of two female bears, one of them with two cubs.
“Bears do not get trapped easily, and capturing a mother bear with cubs is rare,” said Gurharsh Singh, the Rampur divisional forest officer. He said the animals were translocated according to established protocol.
Residents in Kotgarh say the attacks began only in the last five to six years. “About a decade ago, bear attacks on livestock were unheard of. Now they have become common,” said Mukesh Bhardwaj, a local resident. He recalled a bear breaking into his cowshed last winter. “My cow survived only because we managed to drive the animal away in time,” he said.
Wildlife experts attribute the change to disruptions in the bears’ hibernation cycle. “With winters becoming warmer and snowfall declining, bears are remaining active for longer periods,” said S. Sathyakumar, former scientist at the Wildlife Institute of India. “This increases the likelihood of human-wildlife conflict.”
Singh said attacks are most frequent during November and December and called for detailed research to better understand the behavioral shift. In the meantime, he urged farmers to improve cowshed construction. “Well-built cowsheds can significantly reduce bear attacks on livestock,” he said.
