A fisherman trolling along waters in a protected forest reserve in West Bengal state said his father was on the boat with him, when a tiger leapt on to the craft and dragged him into a nearby swampy area.

Jyotish Majhi, whose sister was also aboard the boat, said they tried to beat off the tiger with sticks, The Associated Press reported. The tiger nonetheless won, and Mr. Majhi and his sister watched helplessly as the beast dragged off their 60-year-old father who was still thrashing as he hung from its mouth, AP said.

The Sunderbans National Park where the incident took place has one of the largest populations of Bengal tigers.

In the last four months, three other tiger attacks have occurred in the same region, AP reported.

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