Chandrapur: The forest department captured tigress T-2, which killed four women in a single strike while they were collecting tendu leaves in the Gunjewahi forest under Sindewahi range of Chandrapur district on Friday, bringing some relief to the region grappling with rising human-wildlife conflict.
Capture Operation
The 14-year-old tigress from Tadoba was tranquilised around 7pm on Saturday near a pond in the Pawanpar area of the range by sharpshooter Ajay Marathe of Tadoba Rapid Response Team (RRT). It was shifted to a cage before relocation to the transit treatment centre in Chandrapur.
Search for Cubs
A massive search operation is under way to trace the tigress' three cubs, estimated to be between 16 and 18 months old, said range forest officer (RFO) Anjali Sayankar. Forest officials said the operation involved a 77-member team deployed to track the movement of the tigress and its cubs. The mission included three Special Tiger Protection Force (STPF) teams from Tadoba working in shifts, a Rapid Response Unit, Shindewahi range forest guards, forest labourers, and mobile squad personnel. Apart from this, the department has deployed two drones, eight live motion-sensor cameras, and 20 camera traps across the forest area to track the cubs.
The operation was conducted under the supervision of Bramhapuri Deputy Conservator of Forests Dr Kumaraswamy, while assistant conservators MP Gaikwad and RFO Anjali Sayankar oversaw the ground efforts. RFO Sayankar said further action would be taken as per guidance of higher officers once location of the cubs is confirmed.
