Hyderabad: As a lone tiger continues to move through farmlands and village fringes across north and central Telangana, the forest department has mounted a coordinated, high-intensity operation to track the big cat and prevent any human-wildlife conflict. Seasoned tribal trackers, thermal drones and tranquillising teams have been deployed as officials keep a close watch on the tiger’s daily movement.Specialist Koya and Chenchu trackers from Kagaznagar, Kawal, Amrabad and Asifabad have been roped in to trace the animal in and around Yadadri Bhuvanagiri district. Forest officials said the tiger is covering over 20 kilometres a day, necessitating round-the-clock monitoring. Depending on whether it becomes stationary or continues to move, officials are prepared either to tranquillise the wild animal or deploy trap cages. Locals cautionedAuthorities have urged local residents and political representatives to stay away from cattle kill sites, cautioning that repeated visits are disturbing the tiger and forcing it to move further in search of prey. Thermal drones are being used to track its movement during night hours, while camera traps have been installed to collect visual evidence. So far, one camera trap image has been captured and is being analysed to establish the tiger’s identity using existing databases. Principal chief conservator of forests and chief wildlife warden C Suvarna said, “Even though the tiger has been moving in and around agricultural landscapes and human habitations in several districts, it was not sighted directly by any person in any village. The tiger is deliberately avoiding contact with humans and poses no threat to human life. We roped in tribals, who are experts in tiger tracking.” Suvarna further said, “The tiger has now moved to Siddipet, where it initially travelled from. We received a camera trap image and are verifying it against the databases of Asifabad, Mulugu, Kagaznagar, and other districts, as well as with neighbouring Maharashtra.”For the past few days, the tiger has been passing through human-dominated landscapes, including agricultural fields close to villages, across multiple districts. Suvarna said, “The forest department has been proactive since the entry of the tiger into districts like Peddapally, Karimnagar, Jagityal, Kamareddy, Siddipet, and Yadadri. The district forest officers took up the work of continuous monitoring and tracking of the tiger’s movement through 24×7 vigil as per the standard operating procedure prescribed by National Tiger Conservation Authority.” DFOs in touch with collectorsShe said the DFOs are coordinating with district collectors and superintendents of police to help the department in controlling the crowd at cattle kill sites and to maintain law and order for ensuring public safety in affected villages. Senior forest official N Kshitija said: “The superintending engineer of TGSPDCL was requested to check for illegal electric lines and live wires in agricultural fields to prevent incidents of electrocution and ensure the safety of the tiger, local people and livestock in the area.” A multi-agency committee headed by a conservator of forests has been constituted to monitor the tiger’s movement, with members drawn from veterinary services, NGOs, wildlife experts, panchayat raj and forest departments. A wildlife expert and veterinarian from Maharashtra’s Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve has been invited to assess the situation, and his inputs are being implemented.Tiger trap cages from Nehru Zoological Park, Hyderabad, are ready to be moved to likely locations if trapping becomes necessary. Veterinary teams equipped with tranquillising gear have been kept on standby, while a state-level technical group with experts from the Wildlife Institute of India and National Tiger Conservation Authority is being constituted to guide response measures on tiger straying and related wildlife issues.
