Photos of bear attack in Andhra Pradesh are falsely shared as a tiger attack in Jharkhand - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 4, 2022
Some photos through a post are being widely shared on social media claiming that the pictures were from a Tiger attack in Palajori, Jharkhand. Let us fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photos from a tiger attack in Jharkhand.
Fact: The photos are from a bear attack in Vajrapukotturu Mandal, Srikakulam district, Andhra Pradesh. On 20 June 2022, at least six people were injured in a bear attack in Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh. Many were severely injured and rushed to the hospital nearby; the sloth bear was later captured, and died on its way to Vizag Zoo, the reason for its death is still not known. We could not find any recent news articles that a Tiger attacked people in Palajori in Jharkhand. Hence, the claim made in the post is FALSE.
When reverse image search is done on the photos, a Telugu article with similar images was found. According to the article, the photos were from a bear attack in Vajrapukotturu, Srikakulam district, Andhra Pradesh. On 19 June 2022, a sloth bear had killed a 72-year-old in Kidisingi village. The very next day the sloth bear attacked six people working in a farm.
When we searched online with relevant keywords, similar visuals were found reported by news outlets (here and here). It had been reported that, on 20 June 2022, at least six people were injured in a bear attack in Srikakulam, Andhra Pradesh. Many were severely injured and rushed to the hospital nearby; the sloth bear was later captured. The bear died on its way to Vizag Zoo, the reason for its death is still not known. We could not find any recent news articles that a Tiger had attacked the area of Palajori in Jharkhand.
To sum it up, photos of bear attack in Andhra Pradesh are falsely shared as a tiger attack in Jharkhand.