Ooty: The suspected man-eater tiger that struck at Pattavayal on Saturday and which is still elusive, has triggered unprecedented fear among residents in Pattavayal and nearby Nellakkotai and Bitherkad areas bordering Kerala, 90 km off this hill town.

Saying that life has almost come to a standstill and people are living in constant fear now, S.Gnanasekar, a resident of Bitherkad and an ex-councillor there, said that there are nearly 36 hamlets around the Bitherkad-Pattavayal areas where around 4,000 families live.

“Everyone should understand the feelings of the villagers there whose lives are at stake now. We only wish that it is either captured or killed soon to bring life back to the villages here,” he added.

The five schools in the surroundings have been closed and farming activities have come to a halt. “Now, there is an added threat from police who are trying to arrest villagers for the arson in the aftermath of the man-eater strike,” said N.A. Asaraff, a resident at Pattavayal.

Police should understand that people in the Bitherkad and Pattayal areas resorted to a dharna in Pattavayal on Sunday to demand higher compensation for the victim’s family. But, some elements from outside these areas attacked the forest office and burnt vehicles in the Mukkati area which is around 4 km away from Pattavayal.

Police should stop arresting residents of Pattavayal. Instead they should conduct a thorough investigation to nab the real culprits,” pleaded N.A.Asaraff, a resident at Pattavayal.

Meanwhile, STF and forest teams continued their man-eater hunt on Tuesday but this did not yield any results. The foresters have set up 40 camera traps in and around Pattavayal to monitor the movement of the suspected man-eater.