ADILABAD/HYDERABAD: A fresh case of seizure of the skin of a tiger, its claws and teeth in Komaram Bheem Asifabad district on Sunday has set alarm bells ringing over the safety of the tiger in the state. The tiger, whose remains were seized during a decoy operation, was reportedly killed in the Valgonda forest in Indravelli mandal.
Nine people have been taken into custody in connection with the seizure, including one man in whose house traps used to capture wild animals were found, along with the jaw, and other bones of a tiger were seized.
Sunday’s tiger skin seizure, however, has some forest department officials worried that there may have been more than two tigers that could have been poached.
“Once the investigations are completed, we may be able to establish if one or two tigers were killed. But only DNA tests on the recovered skin and other parts will establish with certainty if more than one tiger was killed,” a senior forest department official said.
The poached tiger, whose skin was seized, is said to be the same one that was seen moving in the Velgonda forests in Indravelli mandal in September and October.
The forest department, in an official release late on Sunday night, said, the tiger was killed in cotton fields belonging to one Penduru Devrao of Velgonda village. It was caught in snares kept to catch wild boar, the official release said.
Following information from Devrao, and Godugu Avinash, who were caught with the skin on Saturday evening, a raid was conducted on the house of another person, Penduru Mukund Rao, in Velgonda from where jaw and other tiger bones along with traps used to catch wild animals were seized.
Others arrested in the case so far include Mesram Manku, Mesram Deepak, Mesram Chandrakanth, Mesram Eeshwe, and Mesram Laxman.
Though the accused claimed that the tiger was unintentionally caught in a trap laid for wild boar, they did not inform the forest officials. They skinned the tiger and dumped the carcass into a stream. It is said that one Avinash of Bellampalli played a key role in the efforts to sell the tiger skin, and he is said to be a friend of Devrao, whose father works with the forest department.
Acting on a tip-off, the Kagaznagar forest mounted a decoy operation and offered Avinash Rs 10 lakh for the tiger skin. Avinash asked Devarao and others to bring the skin. When Devrao and his team went to Kagaznagar with the skin, they were arrested.
Meanwhile, a large number of Adivasis and Thudumdebba activists staged a dharna at the forest office and blocked roads in Indravelli, demanding action against Kagaznagar, Utnoor and Indravelli forest officials who conducted raids and entered Adivasi houses wearing footwear.
There are allegations that some Adivasis attempted to attack forest department vehicles but that the officials managed to escape along with the villagers who had been taken into custody. Adivasis said Laxman was not involved in the issue and was a good officer. Utnoor ASP Harsha Vardhan intervened and Adivasis withdrew their protest when the officer promised them to book officials who had insulted their traditions.
