Bear strays into West Bengal town

A bear strayed into Malbazar town in north Bengal on Thursday morning, triggering panic among the locals, officials said.

The bear was found by civic sanitation workers in a government building in the Bataigola area in Malabazar Municipality's ward number 11, they said.

The incident triggered a panic in the area with the Jalpaiguri district already on alert after the bear was sighted two days back but could not be trapped.

As the bear was on the prowl, the district authorities suspended the local book fair for a day as a precautionary measure.

Forest personnel from the Gorumara Wildlife Division were working to rescue the bear from the building, officials said.

After being rescued, the bear will be released in the wilds of the Neora Valley National Park, they said.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)