On Tuesday morning, a white tiger killed a 20-year-old man identified only as Maqsood in the New Delhi zoo. Reports state that the man climbed over a fence and fell into the protective moat around the tiger. He was in the tiger’s lair, to the shock and horror of onlookers. The zoo authorities state that the man had ignored warnings from the guards as he was too close to the protective fence. Eyewitnesses claim that the young man was leaning precariously over the fence and fell in. There may be conflicting reports, but one thing is certain that the young man flouted rules, defied authorities and paid a tragic and tremendously high price.

It is time people stopped being so foolhardy as to actually go into animals cages. Even in Mumbai, zoo visitors are seen flouting rules. They regularly ignore guards who warn them not to stray close to enclosures, and are ignorant by choice about an animal’s capability to do them grievous harm.