Dead denied dignity: NHRC notice to Jharsuguda SP

Amidst the hilly terrains deep inside the Chirugaru forests of Bandwan, is Zeenat, resting calmly. The fugitive tigress of Similipal Tiger Reserve, however, has put the entire forest department machinery in a restless state on the surface. The live baits kept for her are also kept waiting helplessly since Sunday early morning.

- STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE

"We received the last signal from her radio collar at the Chirugaru forests late this afternoon. So, it's estimated that she hasn't moved elsewhere since yesterday," Singaram Kulandaivel, chief conservator of forests (central), told The Statesman. Till the early evening hours, Zeenat didn't move an inch further, the surveillance devices assured the forest officials.

Yamuna, another translocated tigress, meanwhile deserted the Similipal Tiger Reserve, and a section of senior Bengal Forest officials is in apprehension about whether she would also intrude on Bengal patches following Zeenat.

"Such terrains, though, have potential for hideouts, but the sustained scarcity of prey here isn't potential for tiger habitat," claimed Prakash Chand Gogineni, field director of Similipal Tiger Reserve, adding, "Similipal instead owns an idyllic habitat for the big cats as it has a diverse prey base."