Wayanad (Kerala) | Capturing the tiger, which killed a 47-year-old woman a day ago at Mananthavady here, is the first priority and for that cages are being set up in various places in the area, forest officials said on Saturday.

A forest official told reporters here that cages were being set up in the area as pug marks of the animal were found during the preliminary search.

He also said that there will be no haste in carrying out the operation in order to ensure that the tiger does not move on to another area.

"If it moves to another area, all that we have done here will have to be done there also," the official said.

The victim, Radha, who belonged to a scheduled caste, was mauled by the tiger while she was out plucking coffee at the Priyadarshini Estate in Mananthavady village on Friday morning.

Her remains were handed over to the family on Saturday morning after carrying out the postmortem.

The incident had sparked intense protests in the area with locals preventing her remains to be taken for postmortem till the authorities assured safety of the people and capture or killing of the tiger.

Subsequently, after O R Kelu, the Minister for the Welfare of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes, assured them that steps would be taken to ensure public safety and capture or kill the tiger, they allowed Radha's remains to be taken for postmortem.

Prohibitory orders under section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) have been issued to prevent all types of public gatherings in four divisions of Mananthavady municipality till the tiger was captured.

Besides that, a dawn-to-dusk hartal called by the Congress in the Mananthavady area is also in effect.

The attack on the woman occurred a day after Kerala Forest Minister A K Saseendran claimed in the assembly that human-animal conflicts were declining in the state and the government was taking effective action.