Missing tiger ‘Jai’ sighted by shepherds

MUMBAI: A tiger spotted in a forest 80 kilometres from Nagpur could be ‘Jai’, who went missing from Umred Karhandla Wildlife Sanctuary on April 18, forest officials from Bhandara have said.

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The tiger was spotted near Rawanwadi village by shepherds on Saturday evening, said forest officials who have set up a team to locate the cat by using camera traps. “We were informed that the tiger was spotted on the eastern end of Bhandara district on Saturday evening, close to a local water body,” said Umesh Udal Verma, deputy conservator of forest, Bhandara division. “We have notified the Nagpur forest department about the sighting and deputed officers on field that are investigating the area.”

HT had reported on July 21 that pug marks of the 250kg tiger were found nearly 30 kilometres away from the sanctuary towards Pauni Betala village in Bhandara district.

“Based on evidence provided by locals and some pugmarks spotted in the area, sufficient camera traps have been put on trees. While there have been many rumours of Jai’s sightings, this information seems accurate,” he said.

According to the forest department, Jai is one of the largest tigers in the Vidarbha range. He came to Umred Karhandla from the New Nagzira Navegaon Tiger Reserve (NNTR) in 2013 and was the only male across the 190 square kilometre sanctuary until he fathered nine cubs – seven male and two female.