Forest dept deploys 40 staffers to track tiger sighted in Odisha’s Gajapati

Bhubaneswar: The Forest department has deployed as many as 40 employees to track a Royal Bengal Tiger (RBT) sighted in Mahendra forest range in Odisha Gajapati district.

The tiger was initially sighted in the forest near Santoshpur in Gajapati on October 19. The pugmarks of the feline animal were found near S. Routpur under Gosani block of the district a day ago, said Assistant Conservator of Forest (ACF) Ashok Kumar Behera.

The Forest department has deployed as many as 40 of its employees to track the big cat. The residents of several villages under Gosani (Paralakhemundi) and Rayagada blocks have been asked to remain alert to avoid any untoward incident, Behera added.

Images of the tiger were captured in camera traps installed at Mahendra forest range on October 19. The big cat had reportedly killed a cow near Santoshpur on the same day.

The Forest department had confirmed the presence of the RBT in Mahendra forest after examining the pugmarks of the animal, sources said.

“The Forest department has installed additional camera traps in the forest to monitor the movement of the tiger,” Behera added.

It is suspected that the RBT might have migrated from a forest in Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh to Mahendra forest in Odisha.