After the mauled body of a person was found in the Corbett-Ramnagar forest area on December 25, 2022, joint forest teams have started investigating the area and setting up camera traps to find the tiger.
The man, identified as Abdul Rashid, was drinking with two friends in an area of the jungle where movement is restricted after sunrise and sunset.
“It is unfortunate that such a thing has happened. The forest department takes out regular convoys on the highways to ask people not to wander out into the forest after dark as it can prove to be risky,“ said Samir Sinha, chief wildlife warden, Uttarakhand. “We are now trying to capture the tiger.”
Two teams have been deployed to tranquilise the tiger, he told Down To Earth.
The tiger is also suspected to have killed another man on December 12. Camera traps and cages have been set up in the forest to trace the movement of the tiger and capture it as soon as possible.
“We are trying to capture the tiger and are requesting the people for their cooperation and stay indoors after sunset. We have requested them to not venture outside unless absolutely necessary,” Sinha shared.
However, the department has no plans to put the tiger down. “We are following the protocol that states we need to try and capture the animal alive as far as possible,” said Sinha, adding:
In case a tough decision needs to be taken, we will do so in due time, following the proper procedure. So far, our aim is to capture the animal alive.
The officials have also not decided whether they will release the tiger in another forest to avoid more conflict with humans in the future after it is captured or if they will send it to a zoo, according to Sinha.
“It is premature to say where the tiger will be sent after being captured. We will keep it in the cage for a few days and observe it and verify certain parameters before making this decision,” he said.
According to the newspaper The Times of India, there are around 230 tigers in the stretch between Aamdanda checkpost in Corbett and Mohand checkpost in Almora. There have been 13 deaths due to tiger attacks in the state in 2022, the highest in 22 years.