The three-year-old tigress was taken from Bihar’s ‘Valmiki Tiger Reserve’ to Hasimara Air Force Station in North Bengal on Wednesday morning. This is part of an ambitious effort to restore the tiger population in the state’s ‘Buxa Tiger Reserve’.
The tigress, captured after a week-long search operation, was brought to Gorakhpur airport in a specially designed cage with full medical assistance. An Indian Air Force helicopter airlifted the tigress to Hasimara, where it landed around 4:45 am.
Forest department officials said a team of about 70 tiger rescue workers had been searching for the tigress in the Valmiki Tiger Reserve for several days despite bad weather. He was finally rendered unconscious with sleeper darts before sunset on Tuesday.
After the tigress was captured, her health was checked before being taken by road to Gorakhpur airport, about 125 km from the Valmiki Tiger Reserve in Bihar’s Champaran district. After being airlifted, two wildlife veterinarians and tiger experts in Hasimara examined his physical parameters for over an hour.
After this the tigress was taken by road to Buxa Tiger Reserve, located about 37 kilometers from Hasimara. Security arrangements were tightened along the route and additional police forces were deployed to ensure smooth transfer.
The tigress entered Buxa from the Rajbhatkhawa gate at around 6:45 pm and was taken to the special facility of the forest department located at 25 Miles. It will be kept there temporarily before being shifted to a 2.2-hectare natural enclosure.
Officials said the tigress will be released into a natural enclosure on October 2, on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti.
West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari and Union Minister Bhupendra Yadav are expected to attend the event.
The translocation is part of a broader initiative to revive the tiger population in Baksa. The sanctuary is preparing for this reintroduction programme, and forest officials have made arrangements for acclimatization and monitoring of the tigress after its release. The transfer of the tigress involved coordination between forest, wildlife and defense officials.