December 28th 2024.
The elusive tigress, Zeenat, who had escaped from Odisha's Similipal Tiger Reserve, has resurfaced after 17 days in West Bengal's Bankura district. She had caused quite a stir among the villagers and had cleverly evaded the forest guards on her journey. The Chief Wildlife Warden, Debal Roy, informed PTI that Zeenat had made her way to the Gopalpur jungle in Ranibandh from Manbazar in Purulia district. The forest personnel from West Bengal's Sunderban and Jhargram, along with those from Odisha, have been prepared with tranquiliser guns and cages to capture her.
According to Roy, Zeenat is currently located at a distance from Gosaidihi village in Ranibandh. The area has been surrounded with nylon nets, and the wait continues for her capture. "However," he added, "we are confident that she will be trapped soon." Another forest officer disclosed that they had attempted to sedate her by firing tranquiliser shots based on the location of her radio collar. But due to the dense fog in the jungle, they were unable to approach her directly. It is yet to be determined if she has been successfully hit.
Zeenat had travelled approximately 15 km to find shelter in a forest in Manbazar on December 27, after being holed up in Bandwan for three days. She has been in West Bengal for a week now, having crossed over from Jharkhand. Despite the enticing bait set in trap-door cages, she has not been lured in. Instead, she has been feasting on domestic goats that have wandered into the forests. Officials have also noted that her movements have been limited in the past few days, and she has been covering shorter distances.
In an effort to track her movements, drones have been deployed, but the thick foliage has made it challenging to monitor her closely. Zeenat has already travelled over 120 km in the tri-junction of West Bengal, Jharkhand, and Odisha, in search of a new territory after leaving Similipal. However, she has shown no signs of returning to her previous home. It is worth mentioning that Zeenat was brought to Similipal from Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve in Maharashtra last month to introduce a new gene pool to the tiger population. PTI has reported this exciting update on Zeenat's journey, and we eagerly await her capture.
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