Guwahati, Aug 19 (PTI) A male tiger was camera-trapped in Assam’s Dihing Patkai National Park, Environment and Forest Minister Jayanta Malla Baruah said on Wednesday.
The big cat was captured on the camera during monitoring by the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) in collaboration with the state forest department.
Earlier, forest officials had discovered pug marks, indicating the possibility of the presence of a tiger, but the latest camera trap record now provides scientific confirmation, the minister said.
”A male tiger has been camera-trapped, and its presence scientifically verified in Dihing Patkai National Park during camera trap monitoring by the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), in collaboration with Margherita West Forest Range, Digboi Forest Division,” Baruah said in a social media post.
”A rare and remarkable moment for Assam’s rainforest landscape. Behind this record are countless hours of patrolling, monitoring and silent vigilance by our dedicated forest officers and frontline personnel. The forest speaks. We listen. And sometimes, it reveals a tiger!” he added.
The minister said this was a moment of immense pride for the state’s forest department and a powerful reminder of Dihing Patkai’s ecological richness.
Dihing Patkai National Park, referred to as the ‘Amazon of the East’ for its rainforests, is spread over 232 sq km in Tinsukia and Dibrugarh districts.
It is the only protected forest in India that shelters eight different wild cat species, including the tiger, leopard, Clouded Leopard, Golden Cat, Leopard Cat, Jungle Cat, Marbled Cat and Fishing Cat.
Environmentalists have pointed out that tigers were spotted in the park earlier but this was the first time that it has been camera-trapped. PTI DG DG ACD
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