State govt orders STF not to shoot Gudalur tiger
C S KOTTESWARAN
The State wildlife headquarters has issued instructions to the special task force and the wildlife wing deputed at the Gudalur forest area not to shoot the tiger suspected of killing a villager last week in The Nilgiris.
“The objective of the ongoing wildlife search operation is to tranquilise the tiger and capture it alive,” principal chief conservator of forests and chief wildlife warden Shekhar Kumar Niraj told DT Next.
He added that the tiger has been spotted multiple times by a drone but is mostly staying hidden inside dense green cover avoiding the eyes of the field trackers thus delaying the darting process. “Plan B is to capture the tiger through a state-of-the-art cage brought from Kerala. Alos, a mix of dedicated wildlife rescue teams from Tamil Nadu and Kerala Forest Departments are positioned to execute the operation. The cage has been placed near the bush where the tiger is frequenting. To strengthen surveillance, a team of 10 members from Tamil Nadu Special Taskforce trained in jungle landscape has been deployed to assist the rescue team,” he said.
A total of 185 Department staff have been positioned to ensure the safety of villagers and to protect them from the tiger. After capture, the animal will be examined by wildlife biologists and three veterinarians to ascertain why it behaved unusually or strayed into villages attacking humans. If any treatment is required for the animal that too will be provided, assured the official.
Niraj added that they are regularly using drone cameras and camera traps in areas where wildlife straying into human habitats have been reported. In this case, 12 camera traps have been placed to monitor the tiger and six camera traps have sent images of the feline. “Last time we did a similar exercise for the Rivaldo elephant that was relocated into the wild in compliance with the Madras High Court order,” the officer said.