Family members of Kultali resident and crab hunter Shankar Sardar, 29, who was badly wounded by a tiger on Monday and died on Tuesday, donated his eyes to a Calcutta-based eye hospital, responding to a plea made by a voluntary organisation of South 24-Parganas.

Several voluntary organisations involved in encouraging eye donation said this was the first instance of family members of a tiger attack victim coming forward to donate the deceased’s eyes.

After family members of Shankar gave their consent to social organisation Janaganer Pathshala, doctors attached to the Sankara Nethralaya collected the eyes from SSKM Hospital on Tuesday evening, where the tiger attack victim had succumbed a few hours ago.

Shankar, a resident of Deulbari-Kantamari village of Kultali, was fatally injured on Monday afternoon by a tiger at Chituri forest area when he was laying traps for crabs.

Two other fishermen accompanying him fought with the tiger and rescued him. They took him to Joynagar-Kultali rural hospital and when his condition turned critical with fatal head injuries, to SSKM Hospital in Calcutta, where he died.

As the news spread, members of Janaganer Pathshala got in touch with Shankar’s family members and urged them to donate his eyes. Samarendra Chakraborty, a member of the organisation, who is an employee of Calcutta Police, convinced the family to agree to the noble cause.

“I tried to convince them that Shankar would remain alive in someone else’s eyes. I told them that it will be a great tribute to the deceased young man who was known to be very helpful person in his locality. The family members were initially reluctant, but eventually agreed,” Chakraborty said.

Shankar’s father-in-law, Ramprasad Bagani, who also inspired the family members to donate the eyes, said: “My son-in-law won’t return. Why waste his eyes that can instead help two persons overcome their blindness.”

Once the family consented, members of Janaganer Pathshala obtained a no-objection certificate from Bhawanipore police and informed the eye hospital authority, who sent to the SSKM a three-member team to collect the eyes.

“This is most probably the first instance in the country that a tiger attack victim’s eyes have been donated,” Chakraborty added. An official of the eye hospital said this donation would help two persons overcome their blindness.

Forest department sources said during the last three months at least 17 fishermen had been killed by tigers. Since January 30, at least two crab hunters, including Shankar, were killed while one went missing as a tiger dragged him away.