Wildlife officials on Saturday worked for three hours to rescue a black wild bear which had fallen into a near-empty water reservoir in Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir, officials said.
The bear was roaming in the area over the past couple of days and fell into the water reservoir when it was being chased by local residents at Malla village of Jatheli panchayat.
"The locals spotted the beast in the morning and started raising an alarm in an attempt to chase the bear which, however, lost balance and fell into an 11-feet-deep community water reservoir with little water and got trapped," Station House Officer (SHO) of Doda police station Munir Khan said.
He said the villagers tried in vain to save the animal and later informed police.
Experts from the wildlife department in Kishtwar reached the spot and managed to rescue the bear after a three-hour long operation, Khan said.
The wildlife department used tranquilisers and nets to pull out the bear from the reservoir, he said.
Meanwhile, the officials said two black bears were seen playing on a deserted road in Sai village, around 15 kms from Doda town, causing panic among the local residents.
A picture of the animals went viral on social media platforms with some online users attributing the spectacular to the ongoing lockdown aimed at preventing the spread of coronavirus in the country.
Both the bears fled into the nearby forests, the officials said.
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