After a five-day long wait for the elusive tiger that is suspected to have killed an estate worker, the Forest Department has pressed into service thermal imaging camera to track the big cat during nights.
After a plantation worker’s mutilated body was found on March 11, camera traps revealed the movement of a wounded tiger. Efforts to track the tiger and tranquillise it for treating and relocating have failed as the special teams, including that of gun-totting STF personnel could not spot the tiger.
For the past two days, however, there were no fresh images from the camera traps disappointing the rescue teams further. But there were fresh pug marks. On Wednesday, it killed another cow and hunted down a wild boar.
Immediately, tree top machans were set up in Wood Briar Estate and Devarshola estate areas. Veterinarians equipped with darting guns are waiting at the tree top machans to tranquillise it.
Field Director of Mudumalai Tiger Reserve Srinivas R Reddy, Conservator of Forests - Coimbatore Circle I. Anwardeen, Gudalur DFO S.N. Tejaswi, Collector P. Sankar and SP Murali Ramba frequently visited the camps.
After a plantation worker’s mutilated body was found on March 11, camera traps revealed the movement of a wounded tiger. Efforts to track the tiger and tranquillise it for treating and relocating have failed as the special teams, including that of gun-totting STF personnel could not spot the tiger.
For the past two days, however, there were no fresh images from the camera traps disappointing the rescue teams further. But there were fresh pug marks. On Wednesday, it killed another cow and hunted down a wild boar.
Immediately, tree top machans were set up in Wood Briar Estate and Devarshola estate areas. Veterinarians equipped with darting guns are waiting at the tree top machans to tranquillise it.
Field Director of Mudumalai Tiger Reserve Srinivas R Reddy, Conservator of Forests - Coimbatore Circle I. Anwardeen, Gudalur DFO S.N. Tejaswi, Collector P. Sankar and SP Murali Ramba frequently visited the camps.