Tigress Zeenat released in Similipal Tiger Reserve after return from Bengal

The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) asked West Bengal’s chief wildlife warden to immediately relocate Zeenat, citing a violation of the standard operating procedure

Published on: Jan 1, 2025, 12:12:06 IST

By Debabrata Mohanty

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Tigress Zeenat was released in Odisha’s Similpal Tiger Reserve on Wednesday days after it was tranquillised and captured in West Bengal. A 10-member Odisha Forest Department team travelled to Kolkata to oversee the safe transit of Zeenat.

Tigress Zeenat in West Bengal’s Bankura on Sunday. (PTI)

Officials said the tigress will be monitored to assess its health and behaviour and further actions will be determined accordingly.

The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) asked West Bengal’s chief wildlife warden to immediately relocate Zeenat to Odisha, citing a violation of the standard operating procedure in its shifting.

Zeenat was released in Similipal Tiger Reserve’s core area on November 23 after it was brought from Maharashtra’s Tadoba. The tigress strayed into West Bengal via Jharkhand, complicating tracking efforts. After a 21-day chase, the tigress was tranquillised on Sunday and sent to the Alipore Zoo for observation. The tigress was handed over to the Odisha forest department for return to Similipal.

The NTCA has separately held back the permission to relocate two Royal Bengal Tigers from Madhya Pradesh to Debrigarh in Odisha until the completion of the probe into how tigresses Zeenat and Yamuna left the Similipal Tiger Reserve. The NTCA earlier granted technical clearance for the translocation.

Odisha’s principal chief conservator of forests (wildlife) Prem Kumar Jha said they would reassess the situation and then make a decision on whether to proceed with the relocation of tigers to Debrigarh.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Debabrata Mohanty
Debabrata Mohanty is a senior assistant editor of Hindustan Times who works as state correspondent from Odisha covering the state's politics, governance, public policy, natural disasters, environment and its society for close to three decades. With his long years of reporting from the state capital of Bhubaneswar, Mohanty has been known as one of the most experienced and credible journalists covering Odisha for the national English dailies. His reporting combines on-ground detail with deep institutional knowledge detailing the state's changing politics, governance issues, administrative reforms and the functioning of its public institutions. He has regularly reported on issues ranging from legislative developments and public policy implementation. Politics is his core areas of expertise as he closely tracks Odisha's political landscape, including the rise and transformation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the two principal political parties in Odisha. His long association with the state's political establishment enables him to write on contemporary developments in a larger political context. Mohanty takes a deep interest in writing human interest stories, environmental issues and documenting the impact of cyclones, floods, heatwaves, and other climate-related events in one of the most disaster-prone states. His coverage extends to public health, governance reforms and stories on accountability of government institutions. Before joining Hindustan Times, Mohanty worked with The Indian Express, Mail Today, and The Telegraph, where he covered at least six general elections and as many assembly elections. In 2007, he was selected for the prestigious Chevening Young Indian Print Journalist Programme at the University of Lincoln, United Kingdom, where he received advanced training in print journalism. In 2009 he won the Press Institute of India-International Committee of Red Cross award on conflict reporting for his on-ground reportage of 2008 Kandhamal riots.Read More

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