BHOPAL: The carcass of an adult tigress with severed paws has been found in the jungles of Obedullaganj division in Raisen district of Madhya Pradesh. The jungle where the tigress, aged around five years, was found is part of the Ratapani Wildlife Sanctuary, near Madhya Pradesh capital Bhopal.
According to Chief Wildlife Warden Shahbaz Ahmad, "The carcass of a female tiger aged around five years with its two front paws chopped off was found in the jungles of Obedullaganj forest division on Tuesday. A primary probe suggests that both the paws were chopped off after the death of the tigress."
"The autopsy of the carcass, however, hasn't revealed the cause of death or the possibility of the tigress having been poisoned by poachers, as the skin and fangs, for which tigers are generally poached, are intact. However, internal bleeding has come to the fore, after which efforts are under way to determine its cause," said Ahmad.
The senior state wildlife official added that the state's Tiger Strike Force had been tasked with probing the matter in detail and sniffer dogs too were sent to the forest area concerned to get clues about the incident, but so far no breakthrough has been achieved.
Following the recovery of this carcass, the number of tiger deaths this year in MP has reached 22.
Primary investigations suggest that the tigress died three to four days back, as the carcass was partially decomposed.