However, Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Ajit Pratap Singh expressed doubts about wolves being involved.”In the Makupurwa incident, if a wolf had dragged a 4-foot-tall child by the neck, there would have been signs of dragging, which were not found. No wolf tracks were found nearby,” he said.”Fresh wolf tracks were found at 4 am but the attack in Bhavani Pur was reported to have occurred at 5 am. The locations are far apart, and wolves cannot cover such a distance in such a short time,” Singh said.He suggested that hospital doctors should send swabs of the girls’ wounds to the Wildlife Institute of India for analysis to identify the animal involved.Since July 17, a campaign named ‘Operation Bhediya’ has been ongoing to capture a pack of six wolves that have been terrorising 50 villages in Mahsi tehsil of Bahraich district.Five wolves have already been captured and efforts to catch the remaining man-eating wolf have been intensified, the officials said.So far, at least eight people, including seven children, have died and over 30 have been injured in suspected attacks by these wolves, they said.
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