Shimla/Nahan (HP), Jun 18 (PTI) A Royal Bengal tiger’s presence in Paonta Sahib in Himachal Pradesh has put forest authorities in the state and neighbouring Uttarakhand on alert, with officials not ruling out the possibility of the big cat being the one that went missing from the Rajaji National Park nearly a year ago.
The tiger’s movement was captured by a trap camera installed on a tree in the Khara block of the Paonta Sahib forest range on Monday, forest officials said on Thursday.
The clips provide evidence of a tiger’s presence in the area, and the pugmarks and claw marks on trees near the camera trap suggest the animal has been frequenting the area for at least two to three days, they said.
“An image of the tiger was captured by a trap camera installed by the forest department, and the department has stepped up vigilance across the entire area”, said Paonta Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) Ved Prakash.
He further said that the possibility that this big cat is the same undocumented one in the nearby Rajaji National Park in Uttarakhand for nearly a year cannot be ruled out.
Khara is about 80 km from the Rajaji National Park, making the interstate movement of the tiger possible.
Forest officials from both states are monitoring the tiger’s movement, and the number of camera traps in the area has also been increased, the forest officials in Paonta Sahib said.
The gender of the big cat is yet to be ascertained.
Information regarding the tiger’s presence has been shared with the Rajaji National Park authorities, and their team is expected to visit the location in the coming days, the officials said.
Meanwhile, nearby villages have been informed about the tiger’s presence, and the villagers have been advised to exercise extreme caution. Gaddi shepherd communities roaming in the area have been alerted, they added.
Locals claimed to have spotted a tiger in the region on multiple occasions.
“A tiger had been spotted in the area earlier, but there was no digital proof,” said a resident, Jagat.
Last week, after almost six years, a snow leopard was also captured on the camera trap installed in the Greater Himalayan National Park in Kullu district at a height of 3,000 to 3,500 metres above sea level, the forest officials said. According to officials, when water levels in the Yamuna drop, tigers, elephants, and other wild animals frequently cross back and forth.
A herd of elephants has also recently arrived in the Khara forest, causing significant damage to farmers’ orchards and fields, they added. PTI BPL COR KSI KSI
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