Tezpur, Assam, 27 November 2020:

An adult tiger that had strayed out to human habitation in a village near Tezpur University and had injured two persons on Tuesday, 24^th November was driven back to the wild in a concerted team operation led by the forest department, civic authorities and enforcement agencies. The team from Centre for Wildlife Rehabilitation and Conservation joined the rescue effort and assisted the Assam Forest Department team at the request of Shri P Sivakumar, Director of Kaziranga Tiger Reserve.

The tiger was in a bamboo thicket at Napaam Village after attacking and injuring two persons, when the team reached the location. The district police and forest department had prioritised controlling the growing crowd of onlookers gathering there. The primary concern to keep the tiger safe from the growing crowds was extremely well managed by the district administration and the local police.

The IFAW-WTI team assisting the Assam Forest Department comprised Dr Samshul Ali, the veterinarian and Hemanta Das, the animal keeper.

“The area was tricky and it was quite challenging to approach the tiger for any kind of intervention. Hence, to drive out the tiger from the area seemed to be the best option both for the tiger and the local community” said Dr Samshul Ali, who has very successfully handled similar cases in his career.

“Tranquilizing was not an option, as there was a pond nearby and the tiger could have fallen into it and drowned once tranquilized” added Samshul.

Considering all these factors, the joint rescue team comprising Shri Pankaj Sharma, DFO, Nameri National Park, Shri Arun Vignesh, DFO, Nagaon Wildlife Division, Shri Mukut Das, DFO, Western Assam Wildlife Division along with Shri Ranjit Konwar, DFO, Sonitpur (West) Division, Sourav Borkotoki, Hon. Wildlife Warden and the IFAW-WTI team decided to gently drive it out of the bamboo thicket towards its natural habitat at dusk.

This required patient waiting and some effort to get the tiger got out of the thicket and back to the wild in its natural habitat.

The joint rescue team continued monitoring the area till Wednesday, 25^th November 2020 to ensure the safety of both the tiger and the local community. In situations of large carnivores found in human habitat, it becomes critical to control crowds for the safety of humans and the carnivore to enable the animal find a safe passage back to the wild.

“Sec 144 Cr PC was imposed to control the crowd and drive out operation was carried out in the late evening towards Kaziranga. The tiger moved towards Jia Bharali area near the 9th addition. The two persons who were injured were admitted to a hospital and the situation has been controlled,” summarized Shri P Sivakumar, Director, Kaziranga Tiger Reserve.