Drone deployed to locate tiger roaming in Rewari’s mustard fields

Recent footprints of the male tiger (ST-2302), which wandered from the Sariska Tiger Reserve in Rajasthan last Wednesday and covered a 125km distance to reach the Aravali terrains of Rewari, were discovered in the villages of Kharkhara and Nandrampur Bass in the south Haryana district on Saturday. The tiger was initially traced to a village adjacent to the Sahibi river near Masani barrage on Friday.

It moved 5km south to Kharkhara in the early hours of Saturday and is believed to be hiding in the mustard fields of Nandrampur Bass, another 5km away, wildlife officials said.
Residents of villages in the vicinity have been asked to stay alert. Wildlife teams from both Haryana and Rajasthan have been tracking the tiger, which is now believed to be heading north towards Dharuhera. Officials said they waited till 3pm in Nandrampur to spot the tiger, after which a drone equipped with a camera was deployed to search for it in the fields. A total of 10 officials from Rajasthan and seven from Haryana wildlife and forest departments have been stationed at Rewari since Friday.

“We are tracking ST-2302 and have deployed a drone as well. The tiger has not ventured into populated areas so far. Police officers are also scrutinising the area. Most villagers are panicking, but some are curious to get a glimpse of the tiger. Venturing into farmland to take pictures of the tiger can be dangerous,” said Deepak Patil, divisional forest officer, Rewari.
Residents of Nandrampur Bass, Kharkhara, Sahapur and Bassai in Haryana and Banbeerpur, Burera and Huseengpur in Rajasthan have been asked to stay at home between 5pm and 7am for the next few days or until the animal is rescued.

MS Mallik, additional principal chief conservator of forests and conservator of wildlife, south Haryana, said: “We are constantly monitoring the movement of the tiger. We have set up cages in nearby areas. Tigers usually don’t move much during the day. They are active after sunset. It’s difficult to track the big cat’s movements at night, but our teams are working to avoid a man-animal conflict. We are well prepared to tackle any situation.”

Following the pugmarks of ST-2302, wildlife officials traced the three-year-old tiger beyond the limits of Sariska last Wednesday, moving on to Alwar. The tiger, having ventured into Sukh Kheda village near the Rajasthan-Haryana border town of Bhiwadi, made its presence known by attacking a farmer.