WHO IS T1?
T1 or Avni is a 6 year old healthy tigress, migrated from Tipeshwar Wildlife Sanctuary to Pandharkwada; where she has given birth to two 9 month old cubs . It is here where according to official reports she killed 5 villagers while local reports put the death toll at 13.
SO WHAT IS ALL THE FUSS ABOUT?
With the fear of more deaths & the possibility of her training her cubs to hunt conversely making them less fearful of humans the Supreme Court has ordered a man hunt. The order would have been passed in early 2018 but due to lack of evidence the Bombay High Court stayed the order on a man hunt. It is after the death of Mr. Gulab Mokashe that this stay has been reversed & a 60 member team including vets & Special Tiger Protection Force. But this hasn’t stopped T1 from making more kills.
According to protocol, a man eater has to be found, tranquilized and kept in zoo it is only when this isn’t possible that a shooter can be deployed. This is where the plot gets murky. The Maharashtra Forest Department has involved a controversial Hyderabad-based shooter Nawab Shafat Ali Khan in the operation. Conservationists see red and reckon that the tiger is going to be shot & no efforts are being made to capture her. The vets on the team have accused Nawab of botching up their operation of tranquilizing the tigress & thus have staged a walk out. Mounting pressure from conservationists & wildlife activist has led to Nawab being sent away for a two day break. In order to pacify the locals the headquarters of this operation has been shifted to Pandharkwada itself. Giving T1 a new lease of life the tranquilising operations will restart on Monday.
ROVE REFLECTS
Is it morally right to shoot a tiger when we are the ones who have brought this unique situation upon it in the first place? The Man vs. Wild conflict has caught momentum in India with conservations leading to increase the number of big cats. Their numbers have increased but they have no where to go. When forests like Pandharwada are reduced just to fragments who is to blame, really? Isn’t T1 the real victim of human greed? Villagers illegally graze cattle in forest areas making themselves vulnerable to attack. Farmlands encroach into forest land pushing tigers to migrate & fight for survival.
Why is our forest department so ill-equipped to handle such cases? The case of T1 started in January 2018, the summer months are easiest to trap a tiger, why wasn’t she captured then? With proper education the locals can be roped in to successfully and safely capture tigers like T1.
An immense amount of hard work on the part of locals, conservationists & wildlife professionals has led to the revival of wildlife in India. Its unfair to simply cut short our support when a tiger goes rouge. Its more important now than ever to join hands & lead by example.
We would like to refrain from commenting on Nawab and his history as a hunter is lucky to even be mentioned in this blog.
What is your opinion on the Pandharwada tigress case? Let us know in the comments below.
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