It is curtains down on the drama surrounding the tiger which had ambled its way into the Jungle Lodges and Resorts (JLR) property in the Kabini backwaters as it retraced its steps back into the forests, much to the relief of the Forest Department authorities.
The PCCF (Wildlife),P.Sridhar, told The Hindu that the tiger left the property premises and walked back into the jungles around midnight or early hours of Monday and its exit from the place was also tracked and images captured by the camera traps laid in the vicinity.
The forest staff followed its movement and tracked it till it was about 2 km north of the JLR property and deep inside the jungles. The tiger had sneaked into the JLR property premises located in the Antharsanthe range of the Nagarahole National Park and it was initially suspected to have crossed over from the forests on Saturday though it was sighted only on Sunday.
Following the confirmation based on its pug marks, a combing operation was launched and three elephants – Arjuna, Abhimanyu and Krishna – were pressed into service and camera traps laid to monitor the tiger’s movements. Besides, the rapid action team also reached the spot while veterinarians equipped with tranquilizer guns were ready in case the situation warranted darting the tiger.
The tiger was finally located at a considerable distance away from the rooms but was within the property premises which is spread over 60 acres adjoining the national park and abutting the backwaters. There were about 45 guests staying in the property during the weekend and though they were alerted to minimise their movement at night, it did not effect their activity as the area where the tiger was found had been cordoned off.
Though the authorities have heaved a sigh of relief as the immediate crisis is over, the staff and the elephants will continue to stay for some more time and monitor the situation, said Mr. Sridhar.