Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): A young tiger of Madhya Pradesh has created a history of sorts by travelling hundreds of kilometers to reach Odisha crossing the forest of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand states. The big cat from Sidhi’s Sanjay Dubri National Park is currently staying in the northern region of Odisha. This is a rare but not rarest phenomenon in itself, said forest officials expressing surprise over the long terrain covered by the feline to reach Odisha after traversing through two other states.
Principal chief conservator of forest wildlife Odisha, Sushant Nanda told Free Press that the tiger is around four-year-old and believed to be of Sanjay Dubri National Park (Sidhi).
The tiger is free to stay in Odisha for as long as it wishes, and if it decides to return to Sanjay Dubri National Park, we won't hinder its journey back, he added.
The National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) has even confirmed the movement of the feline to Odisha.
Former deputy director of Sanjay Dubri National Park Hariom, who got transferred recently to Dindori, confirmed that the tiger of the park covered a long distance to reach Odisha.
It is learnt that now the officials of Sanjay Dubri National Park are trying to match the photos of the tiger which has strayed to the another state.
Senior Indian Forest Officer Shubharanjan Sen said that it’s not for the first time that the state's tiger has travelled to a distant state. In the past, one tiger of Kanha had reached the Andhra Pradesh borders.
Sources in the forest department said that normally its elephants, which are known for travelling a long distance, tiger rarely take this long journey.
The Odisha forest officials are elated over the migration of a tiger in their area. Tiger count in Odisha stands at nearly 30.
It is not yet known whether the forest officials of Sanjay Dubri Tiger Reserve will consider bringing back the strayed tiger or allow it to stay in Odisha. Principal Conservator of Forest Wildlife Dr Atul Shrivastava could not be reached for the comment.
