Nagpur/Amravati: A day after a tiger was poached in the Gadchiroli forest division, another was found dead in the Susarda range in the Paratwada division of Melghat Tiger Reserve (MTR) buffer zone on Thursday. The tiger toll in Maharashtra in the last 10 months has reached 42 — perhaps the highest in the country — and triggered an alarm among wildlife conservationists and the forest department.
Reports said temporary forest labourers found the tiger carcass during patrolling in Hirababai round in compartment number 1174. As the body parts of the animal were intact, forest officials claimed the tiger died of natural causes. However, the officials also suspect foul play and could possibly be a case of revenge killing by the villagers as the tiger had killed a cow two days ago. On Wednesday the staff spotted the tiger sitting at one spot and a day later it was found dead near the same spot.
According to wildlife experts, the forest officials need to look into the poisoning angle. This may be perhaps the same tiger that attacked a girl in Dadra on September 5. The next day it killed a calf followed by two buffaloes near Bahadubalda village. Since August at least six villages were reeling under tiger scare, they said.
Shubhangi Dehankar, Range Forest Officer, Susarda, R S Mahalle, Assistant Conservator of Forests, officers and staffers from Melghat Tiger Reserve along with Melghat Crime Cell team reached the spot. Veterinary officers were also summoned. Identity of the tiger and the cause of death are being ascertained.
Meanwhile, ACF Mahalle said that the death appears to be natural. The Melghat Tiger Reserve is adjacent to the Regional Forest Department and therefore the exact area of the tiger is also being ascertained. The cause of death will become clear only after the post-mortem report.
