A 65-year-old woman was killed in a suspected tiger attack Wednesday in Chandrapur district of Maharashtra, said a senior forest officer.
The incident took place around noon in Chichpalli range under the Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra (FDCM) area, he said.
According to Sunil Atram, Divisional Manager, West Chanda Division, FDCM, the deceased was identified as Shantabai Sonurle, a resident of Jambarla village, some 23km from Chandrapur district headquarters.
The 65-year-old woman had gone into a jungle under the Chichpalli range along with other women from the same village to collect firewood in the morning, he said.
While collecting firewood, she was attacked by a wild animal, suspected to be a tiger, Atram said, adding the elderly woman died on the spot.
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Other women accompanying her fled the spot and later informed local forest department officials about the attack.
Personnel from FDCM reached the spot and shifted the body to the local general hospital for post-mortem after conducting a 'panchanama' (spot inspection), he said.
"We spotted pugmarks of a tiger at the spot during the inspection. A cash amount of Rs 25,000 will be handed over to the deceased's family as an initial compensation.
"The remaining compensation will be given to her family members after completing formalities, said Atram.
Chandrapur district in the Vidarbha region houses the Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve, the state's largest national park.
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