Ramakanta Biswas

Bhubaneswar: The prolonged wait is finally over for Royal Bengal tigress Sundari which has been spending a caged life for more than two years in an enclosure in Odisha.

A special team from Kanha National Park in Madhya Pradesh will leave for Odisha tomorrow to take back the tigress. The team comprising a veterinary, an assistant director, and 5 to 6 auxiliary staff will reach Satkosia with a special vehicle.

The team will examine the health condition of Sundari and take steps to shift her to Ghorela Rewilding Centre in Kanha National Park in 3 to 4 days, informed field director of Kanha tiger project, Sanjay Kumar Singh.

“After reaching there (Satkosia), the team will study whether the tigress is fit for the transportation. If the team feels it feasible, the tigress will be translocated in the next 3 to 4 days, Singh told OTV.

After shifting Sundari to Ghorela Rewilding Centre in Kanha, efforts will be made to help her get back her wild instincts, Singh added.

Sundari was translocated from Bandhavgarh tiger reserve of Madhya Pradesh to Odisha in 2018 under the country’s first inter-state tiger translocation programme. The big cat was released into the Satkosia sanctuary in Angul district. But, later it was lodged in an enclosure after the animal reportedly killed a man and a woman living inside the reserve in September 2018.

It is believed that the wild instinct has decreased in the tigress following her stay in the enclosure over the years. Therefore, efforts will be made to bring back the wildness in its natural habitat.

Edited By Suryakant Jena

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