DEHRADUN: The tigress from Corbett Tiger Reserve (CTR) reached Rajaji Tiger Reserve (RTR) for translocation on Thursday. The 4-year-old tigress was tranquilized and radio collared on Wednesday.
JS Suhag, chief wildlife warden, Uttarakhand said, "The tigress has reached RTR and is being kept in an enclosure for observation. Once veterinarians and experts confirm that the big is ready to be released, we will release her in western part of the RTR."
The journey began at around 11.30 pm from the CTR with requisite staff including medical facilities on board. The convoy reached Rajaji in early hours of the day.
This is said to be the first such relocation of a big cat in Uttarakhand.
Aimed at tiger population management, in total, five big cats from the CTR will be relocated in the RTR, which includes two males and three female.
Over 100 people, including IFS officers, forest personnel, veterinary doctors and wildlife scientists, will execute the exercise.
The tigress is from the buffer zone of the CTR and is first one of the five planned.
Officials added that there are two females already in the western part of the RTR where the tigress will be released.
They said that around Rs 40 lakh has been released from the Central government for translocation related activities this year.
According to the last census, RTR has 34 resident tigers, including 32 in its eastern part, which is spread across 150 sq km area and two in the western part, which covers 570 sq km.
In September last year, a team from National Tiger Conservation Authority visited the RTR to inspect the preparations for the tiger translocation process.
The team had suggested that a soft release of a pair tigers can be done to the western side reserve.