Tiger captured, released back into wild after straying out of Sunderban forest
The tiger strayed into village Nagenabad in the South 24 Parganas district bordering the reserved forest area of the Sunderban delta and mauled a forest department staffer
A tiger that mauled a forest department staffer after straying out of West Bengal’s Sunderban forest has been captured and released back into the wild, officials said on Tuesday. The tiger rescue team member injured while trying to save a person from the tiger was undergoing treatment in Kolkata. His condition was said to be stable.
“Two cages with baits were set up where the tiger was last spotted on Monday evening. The tiger was captured in the early hours of Tuesday,” said a forest official.
The tiger strayed into village Nagenabad in South 24 Parganas district bordering the reserved forest area of the Sunderban delta. A video purportedly showing the tiger attacking a man surfaced on social media on Monday. HT could not independently verify the authenticity of the clip.
The tiger charged out of a thick undergrowth on Monday when officials were trying to cordon off the area where the big cat was hiding. A person fell in front of the tiger before falling again trying to climb a tree. “Ganesh Shyamal, a member of the quick response team, rushed to save the person. The tiger attacked Shyamal and injured him,” said a second forest official.
Others rushed to rescue Shyamal and hit the tiger with lathis. The tiger released Shyamal and fled. The area was cordoned off and cages were set up to catch the tiger on Monday night.
The Sunderbans is the world’s largest mangrove delta in India and Bangladesh. The Indian part is located at the southern tip of West Bengal and sprawls over 4,200 square kilometres. There are around 100 tigers in the Indian part of the Sunderbans.
Tiger straying is common on the fringes of the Sunderban forest and fishermen are often attacked when they enter the national park and tiger reserve to catch fish and crab.