Wounded Nilgai rescued in Panchagarh

Forest officials rescued an injured nilgai after villagers chased and caught the animal in Panchagarh's Sadar upazila today.

Locals said the antelope, believed to have crossed over from India, was spotted in a cornfield near Sarkarpara village in Gorinabari union around this noon.

Locals gave chase, and after nearly two hours of running through crop fields, they managed to capture the animal.

Forest officials said the nilgai was likely injured while crossing a barbed-wire fence along the Indian border. Multiple wounds were found on its legs and body.

Haripada Debnath, officer-in-charge of the Panchagarh Social Forestry and Nursery Training Centre, said the animal was rescued and brought to the centre for treatment.

Shakil Islam, 41, a local resident, said some female labourers first noticed the animal while picking red chillies in a nearby field. Male farm workers later captured it.

Rezaul Karim, veterinary field assistant at Panchagarh Sadar Upazila Livestock Office, said they provided primary treatment to the injured animal after arriving at the forest office. The female Nilgai is about two years old.

"It has deep wounds on its legs and other parts of the body, likely sustained six to seven days ago while crossing the barbed wire," he said.

The nilgai is currently receiving treatment from local veterinary doctors. Further steps will be taken based on directives from higher authorities, added forest officer Haripada Debnath.

According to the Forest Department, at least seven nilgais have been spotted in Thakurgaon and Panchagarh since 2018. Of them, five were rescued alive, while two died after being chased and beaten by villagers.