Poachers Strike Again: Chopped Tiger found in Maharashtra Tiger Reserve

In a shocking incident, the mutilated body of a tiger has been found outside the Tadoba Tiger Reserve near Nagpur in Maharashtra. Poachers took away the head, paws and vital organs of the tiger, leaving behind a chopped off tail and other body parts stuffed in gunny bags dumped on a highway.

The body parts of the national animal were found yesterday at the buffer zone of the Tadoba Andhari Reserve just days after the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) declared a nationwide alert. All state forest departments had been asked to heighten their patrolling and anti-poaching efforts after news of poachers targeting the tiger reserves was received.

The mutilated carcass of the tiger had missing head, paws, genitals and internal organs, such as the liver, intestines, kidneys and the heart. Only the skin and the tail of the animals were left behind found in Borda village, and in gunny bags dumped near the Chandrapur-Mul state highway.

The village lies at the buffer zone of Tadoba reserve.

Forest officers believe the poachers must have lured the tiger outside the core area through an electric trap as tigers do not usually venture so close to human settlements.

Only the tail remains

The Maharashtra government has announced a reward of Rs. 1 lakh for anyone who can give information about the poachers, but it is not certain if this can be enough to put a stop to such a kind of an incident.

“It can’t be tolerated,” said conservationist Kishor Rithe of the Satpuda Foundation, a group that does wildlife awareness campaigns in central India. He demanded that the government set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the tiger death and nab the poachers.

“You can find the poachers within a week if there’s a will,” Rithe said.

Only a couple of days earlier special intelligence team had reported that a particular gang of poachers from neighbouring state Madhya Pradesh were aiming to kill25 animals to meet a contract for tiger parts in Southeast Asian countries.

A high alert had been declared in all the 42 tiger reserves of the country and despite this, poachers successfully accomplished their set task. If the intelligence team’s news is to be believed, they might be planning to kill another tiger right this moment!

“We have asked forest authorities for 100 per cent monitoring of water holes in tiger reserves. We have taken up advertisement and an information campaign to tell locals about the situation and have promised rewards for information on poachers,” Pravin Pardeshi, the principal secretary in the state forest department, said recently in Mumbai.

But it does seem that the poachers are much more organized and equipped than the people who are trying to save the tigers.

India has already lost 32 tigers in the past four months with 14 believed to have been killed by poachers.

Tadoba’s tiger population has risen in the past year, according to foresters, from 53 last year to 69 this year but the incident just puts a question mark whether the reserve can actually be proud of its tigers for too long.

In a recent meeting of the tiger range nations held in Delhi it was clearly felt by all countries that the number one reason that was halting the increasing tiger population in all countries was poaching. India has 50 percent of the world population of tigers and therefore naturally the nation is directly in the radar of poachers who can earn upto 50000 USD selling tigers and tiger body parts.

The tiger’s death is a wake up call. Perhaps the men who kill it are much more strongly motivated than the men who attempt to save it.

Now is not the time to think on what could have been done, but take charge and save the remaining 1705 tigers from the same fate.

More Related Stories,

Snare Scare for Tigers of India

Most People Think Camera Traps can put a Stop to Poaching

4000 acres of Tadoba Reserve Reduced to Ashes in a Forest Fire

Image via Gulfnews and TelegraphIndia

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Atula Gupta is the Founder and Editor of indiasendangered.com. Her work has appeared in a number of international websites, dailies and magazines including The Wire, Deccan Herald, New Indian Express, Down to Earth and Heritage India on issues related to environment and its conservation. She is also the author of Environment Science Essentials, a set of books for school children. She hopes this website provides a platform for people to be aware about species in the verge of extinction and heighten their conservation efforts.
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6 thoughts on “Poachers Strike Again: Chopped Tiger found in Maharashtra Tiger Reserve

  1. Hello,
    Read about the tigers being killed by poachers.It is such a pity India national animal died in such a horrible state.Shame for the country.How careless can any one be in looking after the wildlife.
    I wish they take some action in catching the poachers.

    1. Thank you for your comment. It is this unfortunate incident that triggered the maharashtra government to set up a rule to kill poachers on sight. Since then tigers in Maharashtra have still been safe but same cannot be said about other states. Sadly, the year ends with at least 83 tigers killed. Hopefully, 2013 will be a better year for our national animal.

  2. Hi I’m a 15yr old girl from south africa and have a profound love for tigers especially Indian tigers I’m devastated by the way tigers are being mutilated and the poachers are getting away with it . Tigers are to me the most beautiful creatures ever .

    1. Thank you for your comment. It is so good to know that you are concerned about the future of tigers. You are right, poachers are a grave threat to tigers, but there are also many others who are trying to protect tigers and save them from poachers. And young people like you can become the greatest guardians of these animals when you spread the love and let others know the danger they face. Do visit India and see the royal animal. 🙂

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