Tiger that killed woman in Karnataka's Bandipur captured
MYSURU: Five days after a tiger mauled Rathnamma (50) to death near Belluru Hundi village in Hediyala range under Bandipur Tiger Reserve in Nanjangud taluk, foresters managed to capture the animal in the wee hours of Tuesday.
The 10-year-old male tiger identified as U-2,371 was shot with a tranquiliser at 3.30 am and later shifted to Chamundi Animal Conservation, Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre at Koorgalli in Mysuru. The foresters said the tiger is old but in good health.
They said due to old age, the tiger which could not hunt its prey inside the forest and defend its territory had come to the fringes of the forest to hunt livestock in the villages for survival. As Rathnamma was grazing cattle near the forest area, the tiger had attacked her and had dragged her body inside the forest.
The foresters had launched combing operation with around 200 forest personnel and 25 tribals, three camp elephants — Partha, Rohit and Hiranya — and trap cameras installed at various places to track the movement of the elusive tiger.
The camera had captured the image of the tiger near Kallarekandi feeding on the carcass of a cattle which it had killed at 6.45 pm on Monday.
Wildlife veterinarian Mirza Wasim from Bandipur Tiger Reserve and vet Pradeep from Kali Tiger Reserve waited for the tiger to reappear at the spot by sitting inside the camouflaged trap cage placed near Kallaarekandi bordering Hediyala wildlife range with tranquiliser guns on Monday evening.
Around 8.45 pm, the tiger appeared at the spot to eat the carcass. Vet Mirza successfully shot the tranquiliser dart at the tiger. The tiger ran away from the spot in panic.
However, the forest staff followed the tiger in the forest. After a few minutes as the tranquilliser took effect, the forest staff surrounded the unconscious tiger, placed a trap net and transferred it into a cage around 3.30 am.