Angul: Amid violent protests by locals following death of woman allegedly in an attack by the newly-released tigress at Hatibari under Tikarapara range of Satkosia forest, the Angul district administration is likely to shift the animal from the sanctuary.
“An expert team from Bandhavgarh will reach Satkosia on September 15. Thereafter, they will tranquilise and make arrangements for shifting the tigress. A decision has already been taken by the Forest department. Besides, a team of police and Forest department personnel will keep a vigil on the tigress till her relocation,” said Basudeb Satpathy, Sub-collector, Angul.
According to Angul SP Mitrabhanu Mohapatra, the tigress will be relocated and to tranquilise the animal, two teams from Bandhavgarh and Dehradun will arrive in Satkosia soon.
The tigress was relocated from Bandhavgarh sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh and released in Satakosia Wildlife Sanctuary on August 18.
Besides, the SP added the Forest department will verify whether the tigress killed the woman as alleged by the local villagers.
"We have told the Forest and Environment department to keep a tab on the movement of the tigress and confirm whether it killed a woman of Hatibari village in Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary in the early hours of Wednesday," he added.
The deceased woman was identified as Kailashi Garnayak of Hatibari village whose body was found near a pond with multiple injuries.
Alleging that the tigress killed the woman, irate locals of three gram panchayats under the banner of "Khyatigrasta Praja Sangh" (affected people's union) set fire the Hatibari Forest Beat House and the Tikarpada Forest Range Office.
They had kept the deceased woman's body on the street and staged a road blockade near their village on Thursday demanding compensation to the family of the deceased and shifting of the tigress from the Satkosia Tiger Reserve.
The blockade was lifted after intervention by the police.
"We have assured the people that patrolling will be made and police will ensure their safety," Mohapatra told people while urging them not to take law into their own hands.
The Forest department on Thursday provided a compensation of Rs 60,000 to the family of the deceased.