Flood in Kaziranga: Tiger takes shelter in goat shed

GUWAHATI: A sub-adult male tiger on Monday morning came out of the Kaziranga national park and took shelter in a goat shed in Kandolimari village as flood waters inundated large sections of the reserve and forced wild

life either to move to high ground or stray outside its boundaries.

A 15-second video of the tiger that sought shelter in a goat shed shows the shed all but underwater. As the water

level rises, the tiger is barely visible - only its head and rear are above the water. “A sub-adult tiger entered a goat shed in Kandolimari Village (Agartoli Range) to escape the flood. Utmost care is being taken to ensure safety of both people and the tiger,” the Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve tweeted. Forest officials reached the spot and monitored the situation, allowing the big cat to rest at the spot without disturbing it.

Later in the afternoon, the tiger moved out of the shed and went back towards the Agratoli range of the park. Meanwhile, incessant rain has flooded 166 of 223 forest camps in the park, of which seven had to be vacated. Seventy animals have had to be rescued, with a further 47 found dead.

Over 95 per cent of The Kaziranga National Park, a 430 square kilometre jungle that is home to tigers, elephants and the endangered Indian rhinoceros, has been flooded by rains. On Monday, authorities closed a section of the national highway 37 between Kohora and Bagori ranges of Kaziranga national park due to inundation.