V NarayanaMurthi | ENS A SUSPECTED group of poachers hurled petrol bombs and opened 10 to 15 rounds of fire with their country-made guns after the forest personnel narrowed in on them at the Ambur reserved forest area, bordering Tirupattur and Vellore forest divisions on Monday. However, no one was injured. Vellore DFO T V Manjunatha said, based on a tip-off, two teams of forest officials comprising a ranger with five field staff from both the divisions, went to the forest near the Theertham village within the Odugathur range and spotted two persons engaged in cutting the meat of a poached deer. Seeing the officials, the two fled leaving behind the meat, hunting materials and the cooking vessels but shortly returned with a battalion of around 40 people, armed with country-made guns and began firing at the forest personnel. Three petrol bombs were hurled at them. But by the time the department officials launched a combing operation inside the forest with some more manpower, the intruders had vanished from the scene. The officials found some clues, including a paper containing some phone numbers. Patrolling has been intensified at the bordering villages as the encroachers may attempt to enter the forests once again to hunt animals such as deer to celebrate the Tamil New Year, which falls on Wednesday. On an average, three to four incidences of organised poaching and attack on the forest personnel in Vellore take place a year. Some six months ago, a forest watcher was shot at by a group of poachers. On the other hand, the department is reeling under staff crunch, as around one lakh hectares of the Vellore forests are protected by a meagre 120 field staff. Locals feel that unless the State government doubles the strength of the manpower of the forest personnel and equip them with modern weaponry, the forests may turn into a haven for poachers and bootleggers.