Municipal governments gained the power on Monday to permit the shooting of wild bears in high-density housing areas under an amended law in a bid to prevent further bear-attack casualties.
The original wildlife protection and management law banned hunters from shooting bears in densely populated areas, except when they were ordered to do so by police to protect lives of residents.
To prevent a delay in responding to imminent danger posed by bears, the law was revised in April and put into effect Monday to allow municipal authorities directly ask licensed hunters to cull or capture bears on condition of ensuring the safety of affected communities by restricting traffic and evacuating residents there in cooperation with police.
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